Several firefighters recently escaped with their lives at a fire in a lightweight-truss-constructed dwelling. The fire was similar to the incident last year that killed a Prince William County, VA, firefighter. Firefighters entering these structures must remember that these fires take off with lightning speed. If the main body of fire is not dealt with, firefighters trying to search for suspected life may become trapped and caught by these fast-moving fires. There are thousands of these structures all over the country and the fire problem will only get worse for responders. (I always wanted to be in the truck company. As a firefighter, I was known as "The Hook." Later, I was "Captain Hook" and now I'm "Chief Hook-less," since they won't let me touch a hook as an incident commander!)
All joking aside, whatever the type of incident, whether it involves a high-rise tower or a private dwelling, you have to control the fire. Without putting water on the seat of the fire, the entire operation is lost and firefighters are put at even greater risk. This month, Joe Berry begins a new column on lightweight construction, focusing this installment on wooden I-beams; see page 183. As Joe says, the lightweight construction problem is only the tip of the iceberg. Also see Hal Bruno's Fire Politics column on page 20 for a regulatory take on this important topic.
I received an interesting e-mail from Houston fire photographer Brandon Jacob regarding the May 2008 Firehouse® cover showing a fire in Perth Amboy, NJ. Brandon related that as he was showing the cover to his mother, who is originally from Perth Amboy, she recalled that seven firefighters were killed in 1921 while they were responding to an alarm and their apparatus was struck by a train at a guarded railroad crossing. Apparently, the watchman failed to lower the warning gates as the speeding train approached. Several other firefighters suffered critical injuries in the crash.
The long-awaited Charleston Phase II Report has been released. The 272-page document details the operations during the fire. It was reported that since the fire, the City of Charleston has spent $7.4 million on the memorial ceremony, investigation, training, fire site purchase for a firefighters' memorial and new equipment purchases. Some members of the City Council are said to be amazed that the city has had to spend so much money. Other members are backing the expenditures for the good of public safety. One councilman said the fire department never asked for anything.
How about all the fire departments that ask for budget items, but are denied for a variety of reasons? Perhaps someone else's agenda is more important, or the city fathers don't want to hear it or they don't understand why something is needed. The fire burns up and the building burns down. If more buildings were sprinklered and had fire alarms, the death toll and cost of fire damage would be reduced. If the Charleston Sofa Super Store had a fire alarm or sprinkler system, more than likely the fire would have been controlled with one sprinkler head, the fire department would have cleaned up some water and we would never have heard a word about it. Someone saved a buck before, so now they pay -- in dollars and more importantly with firefighters' lives.
Firehouse® has been hired to help the Chicago Fire Department present a conference on strategy and tactics at the end of August. To be held in Chicago, two days of hands-on training and two days of classes are offered. An exhibit hall at the Navy Pier on Lake Michigan rounds out the conference. For details, see www.cfdexpo.com.
Last, we look forward to the 25th anniversary of Firehouse Expo that will take place July 22-27. A series of special programs to mark the anniversary have been prepared, along with numerous state-of-the-art educational programs during the conference to keep you abreast of the latest in firefighting strategy and tactics. We've been offering firefighter training for 25 years. It's what we're all about.
For comments, ideas, suggestions, please contact us at [email protected].
