200.3 Response to Structure Fires - tools.cira.state.tx.us

EMERGENCY OPERATION GUIDLINE
200.3

RESPONSE TO STRUCTURE FIRE’S

Scope:

This standard shall regulate the management and response of apparatus to all structure fires
which the department responds. It was promulgated to:

A) Establish Guidelines for the response of apparatus.
B) Establish rules and procedures to manage fire control and rescue activities.
C) Produce standard and predictable results for fire control and rescue activities.
D) Establish Guidelines for water supply.
E) Establish standards for fire stream use.

Goals and objectives:

The best fires are the ones that are stopped before they start. Therefore, it is the goal of the
Hopkins County Fire Department to try to mitigate fires before they occur through fire
prevention efforts and programs combined with education to save lives and property.

In pursuit of this goal, it shall be the policy of the Hopkins County Fire Department to:

1) Do no harm! Take no action that will cause further injury to a person or intentionally
damage property outside of the fire suppression efforts.

2) Be Safe! Always when possible follow the guidelines and regulations as set forth by
OSHA, NFPA, State of Texas and the laws and regulations of Texas Commission on Fire
Protection.

3) Be Nice! Always show respect to other members of the Hopkins County Fire
Department, other fire departments as well as the general public.

Operational Priorities:

These priorities must be addressed at every structure fire to which the Hopkins County Fire
Department responds. These priorities are discussed by order of importance.

Response of Apparatus Station 20:

Monday thru Friday 09:00 to 19:00 or (when 4 persons are available)

1) Engine 20 & Engine 220 with a minimum of 2 firefighters per apparatus.

2) Mutual-Aid/Out of County fires: It shall be the standard that the respective volunteer
company closest to the incident will be sent and if additional resources from the county
are needed from station 20 the first out pumper/Engine 220 will respond to any call for
assistance from neighboring counties.

3) At no time will engine 20 leave the county for any reason. Should catastrophic situation
dictate the need to deviate only the County Fire Chief may authorize Engine 20 to leave
county.

Monday thru Friday 19:00 to 0700

1) Engine 20 with a minimum of 2 persons up to three personnel, more than three personnel
the shift leader at his discretion based on experience levels of the personnel should revert
to day time staffing listed above.

2) During the hours of 19:00 to 07:00 should enough manning permit the staffing of both
Engine 20 and Engine 220 response shall be shifted from Engine 220 as lead out
apparatus to Engine 20.

Weekends, Holidays 07:00 to 19:00

1) Engine 220 with a minimum of 2 persons up to three personnel, more than three
personnel the shift leader at his discretion based on experience levels of the personnel
should revert to day time of Monday thru Friday staffing listed above.

Weekends, Holidays 19:00 to 07:00

1) Engine 20 with a minimum of 2 persons up to three personnel, more than three personnel
the shift leader at his discretion based on experience levels of the personnel should revert
to day time of Monday thru Friday staffing listed above.

Life Safety/Rescue:

1) Primary search: It shall be the standard operating guideline to extend a primary search in
all involved and exposed occupancies that can be entered safely in accordance with Texas
Commission on Fire Protection Guidelines. The completion of a primary search will be
denoted by the radio term “structure all clear of victims”.

2) Rescue efforts: Extend rescue efforts in the following order:
A) The most severely threatened.
B) The largest number of people.
C) The remainder of the fire area.
D) The exposed area.

3) Firefighter safety: Due to the extreme hazardous nature of fire suppression, the
safety of the fire fighter is of primary importance. Therefore the following safety rules
are to be observed:

A) All persons involved in interior attack, or downwind exterior attack in the
suppression efforts will wear full protective clothing and SCBA. No one
regardless of rank will enter a hazardous atmosphere without SCBA.

B) The division commanders will be directly accountable to the operations
commander who will in turn be accountable to the incident commander for all
personnel operating within the affected area in a safe and efficient manner.

4) Safety Officer: At least one member will be assigned the duty of safety officer by the
incident commander as man power permits. If man power does not permit the incident
commander will retain the responsibility of safety. The safety officer shall have the
authority to correct any violation of the Hopkins County Department policy. Following
the incident the violation will be submitted to the Incident Commander in writing via e-
mail.

Fire Control:

This section provides guidance to company and duty officers to determine water supply needs.
Adequate water supply during fire attack operations has a critical impact on fire control
outcomes. Good water supply results in good outcomes. Delayed or limited water supply leads to
delayed fire control, increased risk to firefighters and victims, and greater fire loss.

1) It is standard procedure to attempt to stabilize fire conditions by extending, whenever
possible by Texas Commission on Fire Protection Regulations, an aggressive, well
placed, and adequate interior (offensive) fire attack effort and to support that aggressive
attack with whatever resource and action may be required to reduce extension and to
bring the fire under control.

2) Initial attack efforts must be directed toward supporting primary search and rescue
efforts. This does not mean however that extinguishment of the main seat of fire should
be bypassed to continue primary search extinguishment may take place first if it is in the
best interest of the operation.

3) Fire streams are to be located at the base of flames not at or into smoke.

4) The following operations are to be initiated at every incident:

A) Size-up with a complete 360 of building.
B) Rescue/Life safety.
C) Exposure protection.
D) Confinement
E) Extinguishment.

F) Property conservation.

5) Write off property that is lost and or already involved and protect exposed property based
on the most dangerous rate of spread. Do Not Tie Up resources on property you cannot
save. It is the standing order that the Hopkins County Fire Department will always
conduct operations from the unburned side of the structure whenever possible. Do not
continue operations in areas that are essentially lost.

Hydrant Water Supply: Hydrant supply in most general cases will not apply unless the fire
occurs in one of the municipalities in the county. In which case the company crew chief should
receive direction from the respective department as to where the best hydrant location will be.
At no time should station 20 units tag a hydrant in the county area outside a municipality with
the intention of supporting aggressive interior attack, unless the hydrant has been test and output
GPM’s are known.

Tender Water Supply: Many operations require the use of trucked water supply. Tender supply
operations may be necessary for areas without hydrants and/or when hydrants are inadequate.
Tender supply operations can also be used when encountering a broken hydrant or when required
fire flow exceeds the hydrant's available water supply the first due engine shall lay a single dry
3” diameter supply line into any address suspected of a working fire with a driveway of 50 feet
or longer.

The first due engine company that encounters a driveway longer than 50 FT should leave a
female coupling at the driveway and road and lay in their supply line, this will aid the tanker
operators from having to come all the way into the incident and blocking the driveway. The first
in water supply apparatus (Tender/tanker) should not pull into the driveway but rather stop at the
street and connect to the supply line laid in by the engine company.

The IC must quickly determine water supply needs and order appropriate resources necessary for
the given incident. Most incidents will use a simple nurse tender operation; extended attack
operations may require a more complicated water shuttle operation. The available water supply
may cause a change in your typical strategy.

Fire Stream Management:

This section provides guidance to shift leaders and IC in selecting the most effective hose line
size. Adequate GPM flow from attack lines results in good outcomes. Inadequate GPM flow
leads to delayed fire control, increased risk to firefighters and victims, and greater fire loss. The
use of excessive amounts of water, leaking couplings, or nozzles may increase loss inside the
structure.

The IC should estimate the needed fire flow (NFF) and establish a water supply operation
adequate to provide that NFF. Generally, attempt to provide a minimum of 1000 GPM supply to
a residential structure fire and 2500 GPM to a commercial structure fire.

Deck Guns: Deck guns offer very large GPM flows (500 to 1,000 GPM), quick operation, reach,
and penetration. A solid bore tip offers greater reach and penetration, with a more intact stream
than a fog nozzle set on straight stream. Deck guns should be considered for well involved
structures, beyond rapid reach of attack lines, for exposure protection, and situations that pose an
unusual safety risk to firefighters. Deck guns and master stream operations are typically not
appropriate for wild-land interface firefighting due to mobility and draw down of available
water. However, they may be used for structure protection during large wild-land fires to shield a
structure from radiant heat.

Attack Hose Line Choice: The objective of the attack hose line choice is to provide enough
GPM flow to overcome the volume of fire being produced, or adequate flow to effectively cool
and protect exposures. Always consider the “what if”. Back up initial attack line(s) with larger
diameter hose lines. The 1-3/4" inch attack line can be used for most small fires, i.e., one or two
rooms in a residential fire. The company officer should order 2-1/2" attack lines for a larger
volume of fire.

Basic Attack Hose Line Placement: When operating in the offensive attack mode, attack hose
lines of adequate volume should be advanced inside the fire building to put water on the fire and
control access to halls, stairways, or other vertical and horizontal channels through which people
and fire may travel.

1) The first stream should be placed between the fire and persons endangered by it.

2) When no life is endangered, the first stream should be placed between the fire and
most severe exposure or unburned areas.

3) A second hose line should protect a secondary means of egress, bearing in mind the
presence of fire personnel operating in opposing positions.

4) Additional hose lines should cover other critical areas or, when covered, back up in-
place hose lines.

5) Whenever possible, crews should position hose lines in a manner and direction that
support rescue activities, begin confinement, protect exposures, and control loss.

6) When a change from offensive to a defensive operation occurs, crews should pull
hand lines out of the fire building only if safe to do so. Do not delay exit from the
building for the sake of salvaging a few feet of hose and a nozzle if conditions are
deteriorating rapidly, unless the line is needed for crew protection during exit
operations.

Fire Stream Characteristics and Considerations: Fire control forces must consider the
characteristics of fire streams and choose the most effective nozzle and stream for the task:

1) Solid stream: Greater penetration, reach, and striking power.

1) Fog: Increased heat absorption/expansion. Shorter reach. Most effective in confined
spaces and protecting exposures. Choose the proper sized attack hose line:

2) 1-3/4" Lines: Fast, mobile, good volume, 150 GPM. 100' section weighs 160 lbs.

3) 2-1/2" Lines: Reasonable speed, reduced mobility and large volume, 375 GPM. 100'
section weighs 270 lbs.

4) 3" Lines: Slow, heavy, and difficult to move, 550 GPM. 100' section weighs 365 lbs.

5) Elevated Master Stream: Mostly stationary, slow to setup, maximum water, 1,250
GPM.

6) Deck Guns: Fast, large volume, great reach and penetration, 1,000 GPM.

Safety Rule: Generally, an attack line shall have no more than 30 psi of friction loss per 100'
section to ensure safety and better mobility. Pressures exceeding the 30 psi threshold make it
extremely difficult for interior crews to maneuver lines. The 30 psi rule provides reasonably safe
working pressures for the crews and allows a pumper to have sufficient pump left to raise pump
discharge pressures to counter the effects of elevation gain in multi-story applications. The
ultimate determining factor for proper hose line selection is expected fire flow. The line selected
must be able to extinguish the volume of fire it is attacking. Nevertheless, mobility is also a big
factor in hose line selection. Mobility is a function of operating pressure and weight. Aggressive
offensive attack activities must be highly mobile. As mobility is slowed, attack activities begin to
become more defensive in nature and effect.

Fire Stream Considerations:

1) An offensive attack mode should achieve an effect on the fire quickly. Consequently,
backup plans should also be developed quickly. If you apply water to an offensive attack
position and the fire does not go out, REACT! Back it up or re-deploy. Think ahead!
Predict where the fire is going to go and put crews in position ahead of the fire.

2) Beware of hose lines operated in the same place for long periods. Fire conditions
change during the course of fire operations (most things will only burn for a limited time)
and the effect of hose line operation must be continually evaluated. If the operation of
such lines becomes ineffective, move, adjust, or re-deploy them. Shut lines down when
desired effect is achieved to limit water damage and runoff.

4) Beware of the limitations of operating nozzles through holes. The mobility of such
streams is necessarily limited and it is generally difficult to evaluate their effectiveness.
Sometimes you must breach walls, floors, etc., to operate. Realize the limitations of such
situations.

5) When using crews with hand lines to enter basement fires or fire in a confined space of
any type, crews should not open nozzles until they can see and/or are near the fire. Crews

should not use fog streams when operating in basement fires or confined space areas.
Steam production will be extensive. Straight streams shall be used.

6) If you commit attack crews to interior operations, IC must closely coordinate exterior
streams, particularly ladder pipes and deck guns. Extreme caution should be taken with
interior and exterior attacks on the same building. It may be necessary to coordinate
pulling crews out of the building while an exterior heavy stream knockdown is made.
Know when to shut down nozzles. Continuing operations of large streams can prevent
entry and complete extinguishment. Do not operate fire streams into smoke, fire location
must be determined before water can be effectively applied.

7) Have attack lines ready during forcible entry operations. Attack crews should be fully
protected and supervised before forcible entry is initiated.

8) Shift leaders and IC must assume responsibility for effectiveness of their fire streams,
including maintaining an awareness of where fire streams are going, their effectiveness,
and reporting the general operational characteristics back to the appropriate command
officer. Shift leaders must be aware of the nozzle diameter adjustment or nozzle tip
reduction may be necessary to produce an effective stream.

9) Ladder pipes are particularly useful and effective when operated on large open-type fires.
A good general rule is you have written off the building (or portion) when you initiate
ladder pipe operations and you are essentially in a defensive mode. Ground crews should
be advised before ladder pipes go into operation and evacuated from the building.

10) When positioning ladder pipes to protect adjacent exposures (common walls) during
defensive operations, the ladder's turntable should be lined up with the wall to be
protected, and to permit the most effective operation.

11) Do not apply water to the outside of a roof and think you are extinguishing the fire. Such
water application may offer effective exposure protection, but if part of the roof is intact,
it will shed water just like it was built to do and will prevent water from reaching the seat
of the fire. This is particularly true of ladder pipe operations.

12) Do not operate fire streams down ventilation holes during offensive operations, as it
reduces the effect of ventilation and may seriously endanger interior attack crews.

13) Once offensive operations change to a defensive mode, IC must prioritize hand line
operations. Most often, hand lines will need to be shut down to provide adequate water
supply for heavy fire streams.

Property Conservation:

1) After rescue and fire control considerations have been mitigated it is the policy of the
Hopkins County Fire Department to direct all available on scene personnel to reduce loss

to a minimum. All paid and volunteer members are expected to perform in a manner that
consistently reduces loss during salvage and overhaul stage of the fire.

2) Property conservation activities shall include but not be limited to:

A) Prompt interior and exterior lighting of the fire ground on night fires.
B) Proper ventilation via PPV or natural ventilation.
C) Salvage of personal property.
D) Overhaul.
E) Proper fire stream management as to keep the amount of damage done by water to

a minimum.

3) If necessary the Incident Commander shall request fresh or additional manpower to
complete property conservation activities.