Over the years, forcible entry has become one of the most basic skills of the fire service. Many companies/stations have a door prop to practice entry skills, and almost all members know how to work in conjunction with another member of their crew. That said, one of the most common things that’s missing from the skill set is the ability to force a door on one’s own.

Understandably, we teach this skill in terms of approaching the scene and the door in a team-based fashion. However, one truth about forcible entry is that many force doors individually. Why does this happen? It’s simple. Departments that have staffing on arrival at fire scenes that allows tasks to be split among members simultaneously are fortunate. Truth be told, many of the departments in the United States are quite the opposite of that. Few men/women touch down on scene, which forces more members to take on more tasks, one of which is forcible entry by one member of a crew while others get a hoseline in place.

Regardless of the number of people, the job still must done, and how we approach them requires having done the proper size-up, having the right tools, having proper body mechanics and being able to execute the proper tactics.

Size-up

As with any good forcible entry, every forcing of a door requires a good size-up of what’s ahead. We must be able to identify five things upfront:

• Direction of swing (inward/outward).
• Door construction (metal/wood).
• Frame construction (metal/wood).
• Obvious locks.
• Structure material (block-and-brick/studded walls).

Getting an honest look at this in the moment that we are operating helps us to be able to put together a plan of attack. There always will be one-offs that surprise us, but having a backup plan to address them is important.

Tools

After sizing up the door, we can’t address any of what’s involved in forcible entry if we don’t bring the right tools for the job.

Single-person forcible entry forces the operator to either have a complete set of tools or a variation of tools that allows a door to be forced or to hold a door’s gap.

Most officers who find themselves in a position to lead as well as be responsible for entry tactics generally carry a standard 24- or 30-inch Halligan and a metal forcible entry wedge. In some short-staffed jurisdictions, officers also can be responsible for carrying the entire set of irons.

Having a wedge when it comes to single-person forcible entry is almost like having a phantom set of hands. A wedge is a tool that aids in creating space between the door and the frame and in capturing progress as it’s made.

Many types of forcible entry wedges are on the market. When operating independently, the best wedge to have is one that’s lightweight, has a light curvature in the shape of the wedge and has groove lines that help to bite when being driven.

A bonus is if the wedge has a strong magnetic hold on it, so it can marry with the irons as well as help to stay attached to a door when you work off of the wedge itself.

The Hydra-Ram is another great forcible entry tool that can be used independently. In fact, depending on staffing levels, it also is helpful when the officer or person who’s responsible for forcible entry has the Hydra-Ram in conjunction with the irons, bar and wedges.

Shortened striking tools have begun to make their way into the hands of firefighters who are forcing doors individually. They are much more manageable than striking tools of conventional length, which gives a member the ability to swing them but not sacrifice the weight of the tool.

Body mechanics

As with anything that we do, body mechanics play a huge part in our success to get a door forced. Understanding that positioning properly in front of a door and the direction in which we rotate the bar is key. For example, when an inward swinging door that swings to the left is encountered and the adz technique is the tactic that will be used, the proper way to force the door would be to rotate the bar in the downward position.

On an inward swinging door that swings to the right, with the adz technique being used, the proper way to force the door would be to rotate the bar up.

These two different types of techniques require different body movements and different tool mechanics to achieve the goal. When rotating the bar downward, I instruct the individual who’s forcing the door to put him/herself and their weight over the bar, to aid with that momentum in the downward force.

Whereas when rotating the bar upward, the member must work from a lower and, thus, more stable position. Most of the power from this force comes from the “power drive” of members driving their legs up and bringing up the bar.

Tactics

Without fail, tactics are the biggest part of forcible entry. If we don’t deploy the right tactics, we’ll spend too much time in front of the door, thus delaying the operation of getting in. The more time that we delay getting in, the more a civilian’s chance of survival decreases, because the size of the fire will increase.

The member who’s operating in the role of forcing the door must know how to deploy the right tactics for the proper door. Of course, this only comes from a proper size-up.

Even though we can do our best to size up the door, keep in mind that this is only for what our eyes can see in front of us. There always are unknowns on the backside of the door, and in those moments, we must be able to adjust on the fly. For all of these reasons, the person who’s individually responsible for the forcible entry must be the most knowledgeable and the most level-headed member of the crew, to allow that person to deploy the proper tactic and transition back into another role, whether that’s hoseline advancement or search tactics.

Training

When it comes to single-person forcible entry, none of this is possible if we don’t take the time to dial it in properly on an individual basis. The goal isn’t to remove the teamwork aspect of the operation by doing it individually; it’s about ensuring that we can accomplish other tasks at hand all simultaneously.

The firefighter who can do a proper size up, understands what tools work best for what’s presenting and can deploy the right tactics for the situation always will be the individual who’s best for getting the door without assistance while other members of the crew are taking the stage.