Tactical Safety: The Fire Will See You, Now

The Fire Will See You Now

By Ray McCormack

Even with a scheduled appointment, your visit to the doctors office typically entails a waiting period: A time out in the waiting (reception) area where your choice of activities range from staring off into space, reading a magazine or perhaps using your smart phone. You are not in charge of the waiting period, the doctor is. The waiting period between fires can be back-to-back, or it can drag on and on. Once again, you're not in charge of the wait, that is up to the fire.


How long we wait between fires is one issue; the other is what we do in the fire 'waiting room.' If you spend your time doing nothing to improve your response to the next fire, either formally or informally, operational improvements will be hard to come by.


When you respond to a fire on the fourth floor of a multiple dwelling, your wait for an operational hoseline should be longer than it would be for a fire in a one story ranch. How long does it take your crew to stretch one and get it ready for entry? After watching some recent extinguishment follies on video, maybe the fourth floor fire would be seen first.


There is one standard that all fire departments must follow: that is to get the attack hose line in service quickly and efficiently. An engine company crew that has difficulty with, and is sloppy about stretching a pre connect forty feet to the home's front door, should ban all on scene photography and get their act together.


For all the cultural change proponents out there, this is the culture that needs changing - A culture of apathy and excuses that allows substandard operations to take place when people's lives and property are at risk.


When a fire occurs in a dwelling, the risk of losing everything is heightened when the fire crew that shows up can not get the attack line in service quickly. We can attend all the schools and create all the programs that make us more business-like, but when the bell rings, extinguishment skills are the hallmark of the fire service's promise to it's community.


The need for fireground intervention, whether it's rapid or slow, increases proportionally to the time it takes to knock down the fire. Time and energy and training in extinguishment proficiency reduces the likely hood of intervention. Many videos tell us through shaky fireground imagery that operations would be best enhanced by a second function being brought into view than sidelining functional crews for potential intervention.


Your risk assessment will have to be dynamic if you do not focus on extinguishment as Job One. If you command even a portion of fireground operations, you'll be turning blue as you hold your breath and await extinguishment by some of the crews that call themselves firefighters. You don't have to throw in the cards yet, as long as you understand extinguishment skills are what fire departments are about. Don't believe it? Then change your title from firefighter to responder. If you lose your foundation or do not understand our core mission, then you may be acting in the next video we all laugh and cry at.


Keep your crew tactically safe by having a strong core understanding of what a fire department does and be great at it. Be ready for you next visit to the fire as you can never truly predict when "the fire will see you now."


Next Tactical Safety - LMFAO - Laughing My Fire Assessment Off

Tactical Safety: Never Mind My Air-Supply, How Much Gas is Left?

Never Mind My Air Supply, How Much Gas is Left?

By Ray McCormack

How much gas is left would depend on the amount you start with, and how quickly you use it up. Every firefighter's personal gas tank varies due to demand, capacity and efficiency. We can always spy a view of remaining air via the remote gauge, but your gas tank is not always so easily readable or reliable.

Roaming around the fireground uses up your air supply at different rates, depending upon the intensity of the performed tasks. It might seem correct to equate the two usages: air and gas; however not all fireground tasks require an air supply, but all require gas. Your personal gas usage is very important to you and your crew, and your capacity does not have to remain static, it can be increased before hand to limit rapid consumption.

Everyone's gas capacity diminishes over time. How long of a time period it takes is measured in minutes and years. Some firefighters run out of gas quickly while others take the long slow ride to diminished capacity. How do we maintain output while keeping a healthy reserve? We can always work smarter instead of harder, that helps a bit. We can make use of tools and techniques that lessen fatigue, and we can train our bodies for the work we do.

Your air supply is reduced as your demand increases; your level of air consumption even when increased does not increase your physical work capability, that is already predetermined by your fitness and recovery rate. I am not one to hammer anyone about fitness; however those are the facts. If you have a small gas tank or you rapidly deplete whatever your capacity is, you need additional capacity so that you can work beyond any artificial ceiling you've created for yourself.

While we should be concerned about our air supply when we turn that valve, a bigger concern is our capacity to work and finish the tasks at hand. If you are out of gas soon after climbing several flights of stairs, you need to do something about that. If you think that time-outs are something you can call for because you are winded, it's not going to happen, and if it does there should be consequences. Maybe the best consequence is that you get a wake up call and commit to a more efficient and capable you.

No one is telling you to do anything except to make sure you have the capacity to work when the time comes. Your air supply is there to help you gauge your level of need, listen to your rhythm of use and monitor how quickly the bell tolls for you. Realize that your tactical safety is based on every breath you take, ensure that you keep them coming with an enlightened commitment to physical capability.

Next Tactical Safety - The Fire Will See You Now


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Tactical Safety: Getting an Opinion

Get an Opinion

By Ray McCormack
Getting an opinion from a firefighter is not usually something you have to request, they are generally handed out like candy on Halloween by the full. What do firefighters have to say on grant money, cutbacks, and the future of fire attack, just to name a few? Many will say something on cutbacks; some might say something about grant money, but many are silent on the future of fire attack. Why is our range of pertinent subjects so vague when we have abundant media available to us, as well as an instant knowledge extension? This may hurt a few of you out there, but you don't have a solid opinion because you don't care enough to bother. Cutbacks hurt us in many ways: from service arrival delays to accomplishment barriers and a loss of livelihood for some. Our profession is more than just a job, and to lose that center in your life is very difficult and painful. We can share that opinion and for most of us any depth beyond the surface will suffice; however when we want to do more than hope and dream, an education in government and economic factors are the lessons we need to brush up on. So why don't we do more? We have the time, we have collective thought opportunities; we have media access, but we are lacking one basic – and that is we don't care enough! Looking for leadership is just another example of waiting on the sidelines and being told what to do. Forget leadership and act. Doing something on our own and owning it is leadership. You don't have to ‘knight’ someone special, knight yourself and then do the work. Grant money is a wonderful thing, and the fire service should get its piece of the pie so that we can test theories, tools and products. Do you know who gets the biggest dollar grants and how much they receive? And have you ever seen the results of all this Federal largess? Most of us have not and why is that, what excuse sounds the most plausible? Go and look up the Fire Prevention and Safety Grant program (it's under FEMA) and see for yourself. It's not that any monies have been misappropriated, it is about educating yourself; information that the well rounded opinionated firefighter should possess. You might be surprised at how the money is dispersed. Thirty six million so far this year, ($36,000,000) just to associations and colleges – not fire departments! The future of fire attack is another interesting topic that many in the fire service have no real clue about. Things will change on the fireground, and if we look around, many places do it differently from the way you do it already. You must look beyond tools and technology and examine trends that are being pushed forward and by whom. You must also understand the impact of independent testing events and how event outcomes morph into new operational guidelines often without proper vetting. A new future on the fireground is up to you to develop or you can just pick a prepackaged option from the shelf it is up to you. Dig deep. It is certainly worth your time and effort to see how the playing field is set up, who plays, and what the score is on many fronts. If you do or do not like what you see, then that is a reward for personal research. An opinion that is based on knowledge allows you to decide what is good or bad for yourself and anytime we are thinking things through our tactical safety will benefit. Next Tactical Safety - Never Mind My Air Supply, How Much Gas is Left?

Tactical Safety: Demolition Derby

By Ray McCormack

I went back and forth on this piece trying to decide what the title should relate to – at least this time around. There are good things that occur in the fire service that move us along in a positive direction, and there are other events and movements that can set us back a bit. I know because even I have been accused of the latter. In a Demolition Derby, the last car banged up, but still limping along wins. So the fire department that takes the hits and keeps going wins in the end? Perhaps; however, not without adapting and modifying. The hits can accumulate as small dents or as a devastating blow; it depends, and no department remains unscathed, eventually the dents occur.

Using modern technology to send an electronic dent is very popular these days. There is no shortage of fire folks who wait like snakes in the grass to spit their venom and put their fangs into their latest victim. It's okay to dislike something that has occurred, we are still entailed to a free will and mind, but doing it as sport is another thing. There are web sites where individuals base their whole existence on going against the grain, and it's not about opinion, it's about being noticed and spreading angst. Their enlightenment of the rest of us grows tedious; without a true identity, you are masked and can be seen, too and not just heard.

So what do we do? Take it! Take it all in, and hold it up for appraisal and then move forward.

What type of fire department would you be if your work load changed to a steady diet of multiple fires in vacant buildings? You would be forced to adapt your current model for sure. What you ended up with would be quite different than the utopia you dream of, and if you don't think so take a better look. The dings that are so freely exchanged and expressed towards fire department models we don't fully understand should give us pause. The fire service derby will never end, but maybe we should all do a few laps under the caution flag.

I appreciate something substantial that can be tried, not just phrases linked together that sound like something. This ‘something’ being a mystery to most readers, until the developer finally figures out a way to attach the catch phrase to a previously understood model, thereby making it palatable for general consumption – but not always.

Derby participants adapt to maintain tactical safety to their needs and circumstances; venomous observers and new age pontificators are off track.

Next Tactical Safety - Get an Opinion

Tactical Safety: Forcible Frustration

Forcible Frustration

By Ray McCormack

Have you ever experienced forcible frustration? You know, that special moment when the door you’re beating up punches back hitting you straight in the ego. Some doors are much better at resisting your forcible entry skills than others; some are set up to crush even the best practitioners. That’s why you should always carry “Humblers” insurance, so that when you meet your match, the secondary wallop from your coworkers should subside rather quickly. That’s only if you have minded your manners in the past and have resisted bragging over lesser opponents.

Sometimes it is the door that fights back and sometimes it is all about you and your lack of skill that gives the best fight. This occurs for several reasons: one of course is that the firefighter involved does not know what they are doing. I say firefighter singularly because the one with the Halligan is where the skill is centered. I never had a problem swinging the axe for an under experienced “Irons” because I knew that I would not waste my swings on a poorly positioned Halligan. Once you gain that understanding you will now be assisting with entry beyond just the power and accuracy of your swing.

Skill levels are best put to the test on tough doors. While formula-based entry is popular and assists many to remember what may be needed: step C, as step A can also work. I like to place my hands on the door to get its pulse and state “No ‘Shock’ Advised.” Which of course, I see as humorous and others see as step jumping and uncomfortable. When I worked as a firefighter, the irons position was not as democratic as I see today. If you were the ‘Jonnie,’ you assisted the irons firefighter until your graduation to another position. The benefit of course was that you learned by watching and developed a keen eye for spotting potential problems early while often enjoying forcible frustration as it played out on gifted firefighters.

As the swinger who delivers the force, you will see some interesting twists to gaining entry. It is not unusual to have to play along for a little while when some unorthodox or seemingly odd events take place in front of you on bended knee. Just remember to use your SA (Situational Aroundness) to evaluate whether what you’re witnessing is going to work or not. Number one on the top ten list, that the firefighter with the irons has no clue of, is when you see them spinning the Halligan around like they’re trying out for baton twirling team. “Houston, we have a problem!”

If our swinger is bad or weak, you may have to switch with the cheeseburger and manage both halves of the entry. This way at least power will be delivered to the Halligan. Do you want the door opened or not? You have to capitalize on your knowledge and that includes the realization that the firefighter with the axe stinks, and to get the door you will do the hitting while directing the Halligan’s movements, too. Don’t let your forcible frustration gab hold to such an extent that you become crippled – entry must be gained.

If the entry difficulty is manifested as a lack of skill, hydraulic entry is an option. If the problem is the door and its locks, the hydraulic ‘helper’ may work. Because you cannot always use the hydraulic entry tool due to door type your forcing, craft comes into play even more because of these limiting options. Your tactical safety is heightened when your forcible frustration is low. Knowing which tools to use and how to use them can stop a cheeseburger from giving you heartburn.

Next Tactical Safety – Demolition Derby

Tactical Safety: Scaling Ladders

Scaling Ladders

By Ray McCormack

There is a good chance your apparatus does not carry a scaling ladder. Pompier ladder is the more traditional trade name for scaling ladder, derived from the French. Scaling ladders are single beam ladders that can allow the user to scale a building from floor to floor. In that case, it is like no other ladder in the fire service. It has been successfully used to reach victims trapped beyond the reach of aerials and platform ladders, and to beef up “personal comfort” of recruits to new heights and self determination. Can it make a comeback into today’s fire service specifically for VES or VESS?

Scaling ladders have remained fairly traditional in their style over the years with minor changes in design. Modern scaling ladders are made from aluminum which helps to keep their weight down. If you have never held one, they are top heavy, with the hook at the top always feeling like it’s looking to smash into something - which for firefighters is a good thing. This ladder functions like a giant hook; and can be used to take windows; however that is not its primary function. Its primary function is to move firefighters into windows and that’s where its value with regards to VES comes in.

Think of VES graduating from its present state now injected with additional tactical safety and usefulness: VES-S the additional S for scaling ladder. Using VESS, firefighters could still select their window of entry, clear it and make entry. The scaling ladder would then be placed in the opening. Now the original ladder used for entry can be moved to the next window of choice and the steps repeated. How does this increase our tactical safety?

It increases it in several ways: for those that like to have a physical marker of where they entered the room to bump into, the hook portion of the scaling ladder provides such an identifier extending into the room by several feet. Your ladder will not slide along the siding and fall down because it’s held into the opening of the window. The scaling ladder provides perfect placement, every time, of the “top rung” and does not interfere with your entry or exit into the room. Once in place, other firefighters automatically know that a search is being conducted in that room.

Utilizing the VESS method places scaling ladders at multiple windows and protects firefighters. Should scaling ladders be further modified? I believe they should be further refined just for VESS. Imagine hanging several of these ladders on your apparatus stacked neatly, compactly, and ready for deployment. Once in place, the scaling ladder provides an alternative to rope-based bail outs while providing a means for additional firefighters to enter your space if needed - and leaves the adjustable ladder available for other duties.

The scaling ladder can also be used on porch roofs where firefighters generally perform VES. Using the scaling ladder just placed in the window provides a ‘guide rail’ for anyone to stabilize and increase their footing on this incline.

This next generation of scaling ladder would allow for more efficient and logical VESS. Not everything old is out of style until we say so. Looking back at the scaling ladder provides new alternative uses for a reliable tool on the fireground while increasing your tactical safety.

Next Tactical Safety – Forcible Frustration

Tactical Safety: Hay Bales

Hay Bales

By Ray McCormack

I have never baled hay a day in my life, but I have burned with it. Most live burns use hay to function as the catalyst fuel source and fire development agent: to support combustion of wooden pallets, slower acceleration, as well as being used to ‘smudge’ areas. When damp, it creates a nice dark umber of a smoke (smudge). The other factor with using hay for live fire sets is that it is fairly predictable. The other factor about using hay for live fire sets is that it does not truly replicate the modern fire ground.

NFPA 1403 does not say that only hay must be used to provide the fire for the day: What it does state is that the burn materials used must have (known) burn characteristics. That is a fair policy and a sound approach to live fire fuels. If we wish to demonstrate to new firefighters what the modern fire environment is like, we should explore and investigate alternative Class A fuel packages.

The use of hay is not the real problem, hay is a great fuel. It can be easily placed, moved and spread about, it can be sprinkled and layered where needed, and it does a good job of creating and supporting fire. What it does not provide for students and instructors is the dense smoke that common home elements contain. Is that an issue, a problem?

Live fire training in many locations has been relegated to pit fires and flashover chambers. From the perspective of fire extinguishment, flashover chambers leave a lot to be desired: They represent a passive form of learning through observation of fire development. There are no turns or hallways to navigate with the hoseline; no coordinated extinguishment typical of a common house fire. Extinguishment of the chamber fire is typically handled by the training staff.

We need to examine realistically replicating modern fire conditions in a controlled live fire environment. We need stop vilifying the limited use of typical combustibles that are found in the modern house in live fire training. We need to validate the use of some alternative Class A combustibles that provide a more realistic, while safe fire environment, for firefighters. We should not run from using alternative burn materials, we should study them and find a workable mix that enhances live fire training.

When the use of live fire training is seen as too hazardous for new firefighters to experience, then we need to evaluate why that might be. If you just ban live fire training that may be the simple solution, but avoidance can cause a loss of firefighter awareness and skill development. If you want to know why some firefighters do not understand and operate properly at house fires, it is often due to a lack of basic fire knowledge gained through live fire training.

Model programs, that gradually takes students and instructors through the process of fire development, along with corresponding extinguishment techniques, helps to properly prepare our firefighters. If you think that live fire has no value, then you have probably never been exposed to a well-planned, comprehensive live burn program. If we think one cannot be developed, then we are selling ourselves short.

We have built live fire training classes on a hay and pallet foundation; we should now graduate to teaching current fire examples by tweaking the ‘mix.’ Give your firefighters and instructors the modern tools they need to stay tactically safe on the training ground and the fireground.

Next Tactical Safety – Scaling Ladders