Simple Solutions Enhance Safety and Operations in Houston
by
Robert G. Parry

After nearly thirty years of responding to alarms in both a small, paid combination department and a large urban city, I look back at the dramatic changes I have witnessed over the past decades. The safety and accountability of our members, while enroute, returning, or operating at an emergency incident, have increased significantly. Sadly, many changes in protective clothing, SCBAs, apparatuses, and communication resulted from lawsuits and lobbying from fire organizations which forced government mandates due to the high number of needless line of duty deaths and injuries. However, not all fire ground improvements must be associated with a large cost factor. In Houston, these two "ideas" were implemented over the years at a minimal expense, which has resulted in an increase in safety and operations.

Several years ago while operating at a daytime fire in an occupied structure near downtown Houston, our engine company was ordered to assist in the roof ventilation of the large, single family multiple story dwelling. Along with a ladder company, we performed our duties and were about to descend from the roof when changing smoke and fire conditions prevented our escape. Firefighters on the ground noticed our peril and put up ladders on the other side of the structure. We were all able to get down without any injury. Afterwards, I recognized the danger it would have posed if this fire had occurred at night, since heavy smoke totally obscured the tips of the ground ladder.

In a letter written to the Houston Fire Department Joint Labor / Management Health and Safety Committee which consists of members from the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 341 and staff members of the Administration, I requested all ground ladders, including the attic or scuttle hole ladder, be marked with the reflective tape from the tip to just below the third rung. In addition, it was also suggested the entire length of a roof ladder be marked to allows it's visibility when stretched across a roof. Aerial ladders would have the top six feet of the fly section taped, including the handrail. The tape used was the same red/white reflective tap mandated for truckers to use on their trailers. After a short test period at the training academy and various fire stations, all ladders, including those on reserve engines and trucks, are now marked. The tape can be easily cleaned and replaced. It would seem logical for the National Fire Protection Association to address this issue with a revised standard, even one that may include different colors on the striping to distinguish between the lengths of ladders used during an incident.

During the late 1970' and into the 1980's, Houston was known as '"Boomtown" due to the large influx of new residents. The construction of new garden apartment complexes could barely keep pace with the demand. This resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of apartment fires and it was not rare to have simultaneous multiple alarms at the same time. The spread of many of these fires could be linked to poor construction, arson, lack of resources, and even the delay in finding a hydrant in the complex, especially at night. Though regular assigned companies are familiar with the apartment complexes in their territory, out of pocket and back-in companies were not so fortunate. Prior to the existence of large diameter hose in the HFD, the term "all companies, bring your water with you" was announced by the first arriving officer when arriving at a working fire in large complex. How frustrating it was if an engine company officer, needless to say the incident commander, could not find a suitable water supply in a large complex due to the lack of hydrants or their location.

In the late 1980's, I proposed that every apartment complex entrance have a visible sign showing the numbers of hydrants in the complex for arriving companies, marking the location of the hydrants with a blue reflective marker in the driveways (Houston’s hydrants are painted blue), and enforce no parking laws around the hydrants. It was met with resistance from the apartment managers association because of the rumored cost factor. It was not until several years later when then Fire Chief Lester Tyra expanded the Fire Prevention Bureau with a team of inspectors dedicated to apartment complexes only. I re-submitted my proposal and the inspectors soon developed a new enforcement program which includes this concept (see photo) and has resulted in better safety and protection for the residents as well as the responding fire fighters. This also includes a new mandatory sprinkler ordinance for multi-family residential buildings of three or more stories.

The fire service is once again facing staffing shortages, station closings or brownouts, increased response times, and directives from elected officials to do more with less. These issues directly affect if we can perform our duties in a safe and timely manner, whether you operate in a large, paid municipality or a rural volunteer department.




Parry is a retired Houston Fire Department Captain. He has an Associate’s Degree in Fire Science from the Houston Community College and a Bachelor's Degree in Emergency Management Administration from West Texas A&M University. He now resides in Wexford, PA. Parry represented the IAFF and was the lone fire service member to testify before a congressional committee for the establishment of the Public Safety Officers Medal of Valor in 1997.