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Thermal Insult Recognition Training
How many of you here are certified firefighters but have still yet to be taught how to identify the limitations of your PPE? With gear becoming better and better each year, do you or your Chief really know what is the weakest link in your personal protective ensemble?
This past weekend I hosted a class on Thermal Insult Recognition. We were able in a controlled environment, to NOT only tell you about "heat" like many classes but show/feel thermal insult recognition while wearing some of the best gear on the market.
All firefighters who go "interior" deserve to be trained in thermal insult recognition. Otherwise... what are they going to base their decision making process from? Is it when the low air alarm rings.... or is it when they exinguish that small or simulated fire with very little heat in a firefighter 1 class? Thing is most newly certified firefighters are so eager to be banged out to a job, do you feel comfortable with there training, experience or exposure to the elements? When the non-controlled fire rapidly escalates to untenable for the trained firefighter.... are they going to react positively or wait just a few extra seconds and we are hanging the bunting...
Firefighters need a systematic approach to sizing up the interior conditions, what I like to call the
Interior Benchmarking model. (FETC exclusive training, which will be offered at FDIC-2011)
Training firefighters for real world situations is what it is all about...
So again I ask, when your gear is at 100% heat saturation, what is the weakest link on your firefighters PPE?
Take Care and Stay Safe Brothers...
FETC
Photo Credit: Sarah Whitney Property of FETC Services, all rights reserved. No use without written permission from FETC and/or the photographer.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by FETC on
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Well I am not looking to make anyone look silly. Instead of just posting a full story, I was hoping to open a dialogue to see what firefighters really know about their protective equipment. Does anyone know the design features for thermal insult ratings and exposure times?
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Permalink Reply by WestPhilly on
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Ben knows.
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Permalink Reply by Gregory Borg on
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I am with WestPhilly, the gloves are the weak link, when FF get engulfed in flames/heat the hands get the worst first. I say gloves.
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Greg,
I think he's looking for something a little more technical about the gear itself. (Which means I don't know the answer.)
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Permalink Reply by Nate on
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My particular reasoning for the nomex hood was that it is pretty much the thinnest piece of PPE you have on. How many times have you gone into a burn, be it a call or training, and you feel the back of your neck getting warm before anything else? I know I have. But honestly, I don't have the slightest clue about thermal insult. Good thread FETC
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I always thought a thermal insult was an incendiary comment. Something like that.
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Permalink Reply by Derek R. on
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Thermal insult? not a clue. Never heard that term before.
but I was thinking that the "weakest" part of your gear is where it is closest to the skin, meaning, where it is tighter, ie.:ba straps, creases in knees and elbows.
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A thermal insult is a burn to you and/or the gear.
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Well dependant upon your level of PPE selection. You are correct to a degree Nate. You see, to keep the firefighter hood from being the weakest link you are supposed to wear your NFPA compliant helmet's EAR Flaps down. This will increase your protection to almost the same as your coat or pants.
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Nice Derek! That is correct with regards to airspace between layers. You haven't heard the term much because I began using it for the name and the content of my class.
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