By Loren Charlston and Warren Merritt
This passionate message is about fire hose falling off apparatus, secured loads, and five Redmond (WA) firefighters enjoying a day on their Harleys, which almost turned into disaster–a near miss.
The firefighters, including Loren Charlston, fire captain with the Redmond Fire Department, were enjoying a motorcycle ride in early September 2009 on a busy highway when all of a sudden they noticed a section of rolled 2 1/2-inch fire hose in their lane of travel. Four of the riders were able to swerve around the partially uncoiled section of hose, but one of the lieutenants could not avoid it and had to ride up and over the hose. Fortunately, she was one of the department’s best riders and was able to keep the bike upright. Charlston’s wife was riding with him, and it would have been difficult to go over the hose safely with two riders on a bike. Retrospectively, the unsecured piece of fire hose could have potentially spelled disaster for the firefighters.
This is the reason two fire officers from neighboring departments have come together to bring this message to the fire service. The King County (WA) Fire Chiefs Association and the Washington Fire Chiefs have endorsed a model procedure less than 10 months after the near-tragic incident.
Since 2005, there has been a state law requiring secured loads in Washington State. The law requires that all loads be secured when traveling on public streets and highways. The impetus for the law was a 2004 tragic accident in Renton, Washington. As you read this article, think about the following questions:
1. Does your fire department still allow fire hose to be carried on the tailboard unsecured?
2. Do you allow dirty, unsecured fire hose that are contaminated with known carcinogens to be carried in the cab of your engines and medical units?
3. Does your state or local government have a secured load law?
Patrick Koenig, City of Redmond, Washington, Risk Manager/Safety Coordinator stated
In driving around our state and local communities, it is not uncommon to see debris or equipment that has fallen off trucks or other vehicles. From a safety standpoint, I think about what could have been done to prevent this needless risk from happening. While we cannot cure everything, the City of Redmond’s Fire Safety Committee looked at the issue of how to prevent fire equipment from falling off our vehicles. Thus was born a policy noting the issue and then creating a solution to prevent such occurrences from happening with our equipment. Recognizing the potential cost of litigation and the Washington laws regarding securing loads, this measure is living proof of the old adage that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
What has happened locally? There have been a few recent near misses. One department lost a port cap off a fire engine on a divided highway. The port cap struck a passenger vehicle and severely damaged the windshield. Fortunately, there were no injuries. Another department had its entire five-inch supply line self-deploy on a major interstate, totaling destroying a passenger vehicle traveling nearby and damaging seven others. A third department lost its entire supply hosebed because it had just changed from four- to five-inch supply hose and the bed dividers were not moved to accommodate the difference in size of hose.
NFPA COMPLIANCE
We receive our apparatus from the factory in a National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)-compliant condition, and it is not until we begin to load equipment onto the apparatus that we become noncompliant. If your state or municipality doesn’t have a secured load law, remember that NFPA 15.10.7 states that hose and equipment shall have a positive means to prevent unintentional deployment of the hose while the apparatus is underway in normal operations.
NFPA 15.10.7* was created to prevent these tragic events. “Many fire departments have experienced fire hose inadvertently coming off the apparatus traveling to and from incidents. Several incidents have resulted in injuries, damage to property, and death.”A report by the AAA Foundation in 2008 estimates 25,000 accidents a year result from unsecured loads in North America.
This message is about learning from a near-miss accident and stopping a fire service tradition that most firefighters haven’t thought about as being unsafe and in some cases against state law
EVOLUTION
It was common practice 25 to 30 years ago for firefighters to ride the rear step or tailboard. It was a location for work where tools and equipment were stored, and the rear step was much larger. In an effort to improve firefighter safety, riding the rear step has been essentially forbidden, and equipment is stored in compartments for both safety and security. Changes in our communities that require higher clearance for departure and approach have reduced the depth of the tailboard itself.
In many ways we have come full circle, but we haven’t ended the practice of carrying dirty hose back to the fire station. It is easy to justify “a short drive,” “nothing will happen,” or “we have to get in service.”
Engine companies grapple with the ever present issue of transporting wet, contaminated fire hose from emergency scenes and drill grounds back to their stations for washing and hanging. Crews consider the risk and weigh expediency against potential harm to the public and themselves. All firefighters have heard about rolls of hose coming off the tailboard and ending up in the middle or on the side of a road. Lives are adversely affected when the public has to swerve around our hose, which can lead to car accidents and potential injuries. The message in this article is about avoiding preventable accidents and minimizing the exposure to known carcinogens.
TAKING ACTION
The King County Fire Chiefs Association developed and endorsed a model procedure in May 2010. In July 2010, the Washington Fire Chiefs (http://www.wsafc.org/default.aspx) endorsed the following model procedure with implementation at the local level.
1. Discontinue the practice of transporting unsecured fire hose and equipment on the fire apparatus (i.e., on the rear step).
2. Discontinue the practice of transporting dirty fire hose in the cab of fire apparatus or EMS vehicles because of its unsecured status and its contaminated condition
3. Options for compliance include a secured hosebed cover that prevents hose from inadvertently coming off the apparatus or another device that properly secures the hose to the back step (tailboard), such as netting or tie-downs. It is recommended that hose needing to be reloaded not be carried unsecured in the cab of the apparatus.
(1) Bellevue Fire option for rear step. Photo by Lt. Eric Keenan.
(2) Bellevue Fire front suction. Photo by Lt. Eric Keenan.
(3) Bellevue Fire netting to secure bulk bed. Photo by Lt. Eric Keenan
(4) Bellevue firefighter quickly removing hosebed security straps. Photo by Lt. Eric Keenan.
The action taken by the Washington Fire Chiefs addressed unsecured fire hose on tailboards and cabs of fire engines and EMS vehicles. This reduces the exposure to contaminants for our firefighters and the patients we transport in our EMS vehicles.
(5) Redmond Fire netting for the safe transport of contaminated hose and equipment.
Implementation of the model procedure at the local level allows each agency to determine how to secure fire hose. Redmond Fire Department hired a small local company to create a tailboard netting system that is put on only when it is necessary to carry hose back to the fire station. In addition to the netting, Redmond fire officers have the discretion to call for the utility pickup when large quantities of hose have been deployed at a fire scene. Bellevue Fire Department meets the standard by loading dirty, contaminated hose in the hosebed under the hose cover. The tarps and security straps were installed by their mechanic shop.
(6) Redmond Fire front suction.
(7) Secure door for preconnects on Redmond Fire engine.
Both authors started in the fire service 30 years ago, and both rode the tailboard and remember how deep they were at that time. Years ago, a large-diameter hose easily fit on the tailboard, but now a section of 2½-inch hose can stick over the edge of most tailboards. Times have changed in not only tailboard acreage but also in state laws and litigations. Why hasn’t the fire service changed the location where fire hose is stored when returning from a fire? Have we just not thought about it? These two fire service brothers are serious about making sure your department doesn’t experience a tragic, completely preventable accident in your hometown.
Battalion Chief Dave Kryger, health and safety officer, Kirkland and Redmond fire departments states
We really need to take this opportunity and look at all the safety issues related to unsecured equipment on our apparatus. Talk to some firefighters who’ve had the unfortunate experience of being in an accident and then were bombarded with flying debris. Simply put, this is the right thing to do. We certainly don’t want to move the unsecured hose from the tailboard and add it to the mix in the cab. This would only add new live loads, possible contaminants, and awkward lifting to the problem.
Doug Jones, fire apparatus program supervisor, for Redmond Fire Department, stated that every mechanic should include the following items from NFPA in their safety checklists:
▪ NFPA 1911, 9.2.5: “All pump piping valves and valve controls, fire hose connections, caps, chains, and gaskets shall be inspected for security of mounting and structural integrity.”▪ NFPA 1901, 16.7.4.2: “Caps or closures for outlet connections smaller than4 in. (100 mm) shall remain secured to the apparatus when removed from the connection.”–15.3.1*: “Equipment holders or compartments shall be provided for all tools, equipment, and other items that are on the fire apparatus.”–15.3.2*: “Equipment holders shall be attached and shall be designed so that equipment remains in place under all vehicle operating conditions.”–A.15.3.2: “Where equipment other than that originally mounted on the apparatus is to be carried, the fire department should ensure that the equipment is securely attached to the vehicle with appropriate holders.”
Captain John Keffer of the Redmond Fire Department apparatus committee and training captain of the Regional Group Training Division for Redmond and Kirkland fire departments states
A department’s engine specifications need to include positive devices for securing preconnects such as diamond plate doors or nets made of appropriately sized webbing. A single belt just does not do the trick! Some fire department personnel have been slow to accept these types of devices due to a perception that they will slow down the hose deployment. This may be true, but a practiced crew will limit that to only a couple of seconds. Positively connecting the rear hosebed cover with fasteners that can be quickly removed will reduce the chance of unintended deployment of hose.
The second issue is how we keep hose from self-deploying while driving down the road either on an emergency response or normal driving. Again, we can all come up with instances where a preconnect or bulk load self-deployed and created a hazard for the public. The answer to this question resides in the specifications for new apparatus and retrofitting of our current fleets.
The bottom line is that it just doesn’t take that long to remove a properly designed and properly installed strap or netting during fireground operations. Training and preparation will overcome any perceived delay in utilizing prudent measures to safeguard the equipment and the community.
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All our departments have mission statements. Most contain the words ‘’to protect life and property.” Now it is time to take action to protect our citizens and our firefighters. Adopt a model procedure that addresses secured and contaminated equipment, and look for solutions that work for your community. A copy of Position Paper 28 can be obtained from Warren Merritt by e-mailing wmerritt@bellevuewa.gov .
(8) Five Redmond firefighters started the day out riding; five finished the ride safe and sound.
References
RCW 46.61.655 – Washington state law requires all loads to be secure. No vehicle shall be driven or moved on any public highway unless such vehicle is so constructed or loaded as to prevent any of its loads from dropping, sifting, leaking, or otherwise escaping. In 2008, a report by the AAA Foundation estimates 25,000 accidents a year result from unsecured loads in North America.
NFPA 15.10.7* – Any hose storage area shall be equipped with a positive means to prevent unintentional deployment of the hose from the top, front, and rear of the hose storage area while the apparatus is underway in normal operations.
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Loren Charlston is captain of Fire Station 18, Redmond Fire Department. He is a 30-year veteran of the fire service. |
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Warren Merritt, a 36-year veteran of the fire service, is deputy chief of operations for the Bellevue Fire Department and serves on the board of directors for the Washington Fire Chiefs. |
