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Vacant Building SOG/SOP
I am needing some help with building an SOG/SOP for Vacant Building Fires. If anyone could provide some insight that would be great. I have looked at a few but trying to get input from others.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by captnjak on
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Without knowing your staffing levels, response times, equipment, etc, it would be hard to get specific. Some basic guidelines:
1) More cautious operation overall; less aggressive than for occupied buildings.
2) Local knowledge is huge. Have there been previous fires? Location and severity? What is structural condition of building? Are squatters known to stay there? (May not be able to treat it as a vacant at all.) There are a lot of important things you can know before there is ever a fire there. Does your department have a system in place for spreading the information?
3) Size-up should be more in depth. With no life hazard we can spare the time. Would you get a better view from an aerial platform or a neighboring roof?
4) Concentrate efforts on most efficient extinguishment. Possible knock down from exterior and then enter if feasible. Taking time to stretch via portable ladder or apparatus may be safer than using questionable interior stairs. Smaller ladders could be placed on stairs to support members. Can water be applied from roofs of exposures and reach fire?
5) If occupied exposures are threatened, they become higher priority.
6) Interior crews should be as small as possible to get the job done. No extra bodies poking around because they want to smell some smoke. Close supervision is also essential.
7) If there is a drug/prostitution problem, watch out for needles, bodily fluids/waste, etc. Let's not forget the possibility of armed criminals.
8) Watch out for possible bogus electrical feeds; could be juice where you thought there wasn't.
9) If building is heavily boarded up, you may have significant delay in ventilation.
10) Watch out for inoperable doors/windows, holes in floors and roof, missing railings, etc.
Basically do what you always do. Just do it more slowly and more carefully. The only life hazard is FD members.
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Permalink Reply by capcityff on
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How do you know if the only life hazard is FD members if you haven't searched?
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There's a difference between abandoned buildings and vacant buildings. You don't truly know the building is vacant until after you've searched it. How was the fire started? Could it possibly be from a squatter?
We have a lot of buildings like this in DC. You have to be cautious. These buildings can be extremely dangers. You don't know what's waiting inside. The structure could be weakened or missing a floor. Many times there could be needles from drug users. However, a search needs to get done. A squatter may be there illegally but it's still you're job to search.
Also learn the structures in your first due area. If you know the dangers of the building ahead of time, it can help a lot. Of course some you can't make entry in. However a room off in an abandoned row home would warrant a search and aggressive attack.
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In my department we refer to an abandoned building as a vacant building. These are buildings that are no longer occupied on a continual basis and owner(s) have stopped maintaining them. We mark them with paint so we know which ones they are. If squatters are known to use building we share that knowledge locally and also enter it into dispatch system. Vacants with squatters will still be searched, but it will be done less aggressively. Yes it is our job to search. That doesn't mean we are obligated to risk our lives in buildings the owners stopped caring about and may or may not be occupied because squatters are inconsistent and transient in their habits.
The decision to search and how aggressively to search will have to be made on the fire ground based on likelihood of occupants, amount of fire (all those holes in walls and floors allow for very rapid fire spread) and structural stability.
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Permalink Reply by 55 TRUCK on
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CapCity, Sir. Again you have taken the words right out of my mouth.
captnjak, Uh, wow,wtf!? Apparntly your dept. half asses it at vacant fires because you have such a low number of homeless, bums, junkies etc. That you can afford to track there movements.
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Just to clarify for you:
We don't half-ass ANYTHING!
We have plenty of homeless, junkies and other assorted miscreants.
I never said that we track their movements. I made reference to "known" squatters. There is a big difference.
I stated that the decision on when and how agressively to search is made on the fireground based on size-up of conditions (likelihood of occupants, amount of fire, structural stability).
No firefighter, fire officer or fire chief worth his/her salt will make that decision from behind a keyboard while posting on an internet forum. Any one who does so is a fool.
A building that has been abandonded by owner, is no longer maintained, is very possibly structurally unsound and is no longer legitimately occupied should not be treated the same as a building that is known to be occupied, well-maintained and structurally sound. A department that treats them the same needs for the leadership to re-evaluate it's risk vs reward formula.
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Permalink Reply by DFD4LYF on
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Excellent advice and clarifications captnjak & capcityff. It's obvious you both are seasoned, well informed, and stand true to the oaths you have sworn to (including not offending a member of our brother/sisterhood). In Detroit we take the same stance you both have mentioned except we have a higher rate of socioeconomic problems per capita and our resources are minimal in comparison.
Obtaining accurate information is tantamount but we all know that doesn't always happen (usually when we need it the most). An educated fire fighter is a valuable fire fighter. It's in our occupational behavior to take limited information on the scene (in seconds or less) and make the right call everytime. Obviously lives are at stake and there's no room for margin of error unless you can recover from a bad call (positive results are what we seek as dedicated professionals). Unfortunately 55 TRUCK this same occupational behavior at times becomes a stigma in our personal lives (being a fire fighter is not a job it's a lifestyle) and we tend to pass judgement with limited information. When not in an emergency environment there is no urgency to draw preliminary conclusions. We have the luxury of time to acquire all pertinant info then move toward making informed decisions. I only mentioned this because I use to be the first to draw preliminary conclusions until a senior guy pulled me to the side and enlightented me to a higher perspective. It is my obligation to our fraternal order to pass on this to others out of love, respect, and commitment to our family.
Jonathan Ingle: if you're also looking for SOG/SOPs for rig placement let me know. I'd be happy to share what DFD does and you're welcome to modify to suit your Departments needs.
Stay aware, safe, and healthy brothers.
"Whenever someone asks me what is the #1 way to handle to an emergency my answer is always the same; Prevention."
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Permalink Reply by Jonathan Ingle on
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Thanks, DFD
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