This week’s featured firefighting near-miss report starts as many near misses do. A firefighter performs a seemingly harmless action to ensure operational readiness. This action has been used countless times before, and had served this firefighter well. However, a chain of events with a simple lesson precedes the situation that puts the firefighter at great risk.
- “The following is a mishap that I recently had with an SCBA on a structure fire and the events leading up to it. It is common practice to place the shoulder straps of an SCBA over the back padding of the seat when stowing it. It makes it easier to put on and it is ready for quick donning while responding to a call.
- While out doing hydrants I exited the truck to check a hydrant and when I reentered the truck, I noticed my seatbelt was stuck in the door and the door ajar light was going off. It was my door that was tripping the light due to my seatbelt being stuck in the door. I simply opened the door and pushed away the seatbelt and what appeared to be part of the SCBA strap. I put my seatbelt on and away we went down the road to service the next hydrant.
- Later that date, we responded to a structure fire. I put my SCBA on while enroute as usual. We pulled up with a moderate amount of smoke showing from the residence. Upon making entry into the residence, I turned my SCBA on and proceeded to click the regulator into my face piece. I got several feet into the smoke filled residence and I noticed that I was having a hard time breathing air from the regulator. I immediately exited the structure due to an SCBA malfunction. When I took off the malfunctioning SCBA I noticed a fair amount of air leaking from around the buddy breather.”
Equipment preparation is part of every dedicated firefighter’s daily routine. Once an apparatus assignment is given, placing our PPE on the apparatus, arranging equipment for easy access (e.g., medical gloves) and arranging SCBA straps are common practices. Interior cab configurations vary significantly by age, manufacturer, cab style, etc. This report illustrates another occurrence that probably happens more often than anyone would expect or even think about reporting. The value of this report lies in its illustration of how attentive we should be to all operational readiness practices involving flexible components. Once you have read the entire account (CLICK HERE), address the following:
1. Have you ever experienced an incident where you caught a piece of equipment in an apparatus door?
2. If yes, what was the piece of equipment, why did it get caught in the door, and was there any damage to the door?
3. Applying your department’s SOPs to this event, would this qualify as a Mayday when the air leak started or at a point before?
4. What recommendations would you make to prevent a reoccurrence of the SCBA strap and buddy breather getting caught in the door?
5. Where is the best place to find an additional SCBA should you need an emergency replacement on the fireground?
Submit your report to www.firefighternearmiss.com today so everyone goes home tomorrow.
Note: The questions posed by the reviewers are designed to generate discussion and thought in the name of promoting firefighter safety. They are not intended to pass judgment on the actions and performance of individuals in the reports.
