It’s All About the Water

THERE HAS BEEN A VERY DISturbing trend in the fire service during the past few years: Fire companies are not bringing water with them (laying in) when responding to working fires. I have seen engines pull around the corner (past the hydrant) and go to work on a fire that is blowing out of every window on the second floor.

When questioned, the company officer will usually respond, “I can put out most of our fires with booster water” or “I only have a three-man crew; I can’t afford to leave one at the hydrant.” The company officer may add: “The second-due engine will lay my line.”

Granted, using the “quick attack” method of initiating operations based on the 500 gallons or more of water carried on board the engine is a valid tactic that usually works, but what if it doesn’t? What if the second-due didn’t hear your order? What if the second-due is delayed? Successful firefighting is all about water. Bring it with you (especially those of us lucky enough to have hydrants)! Officers in rural areas must begin rural water operations as soon as they recognize they have a working fire. The engine company has a number of options for getting water, especially if the incident is in a hydranted area. It is the responsibility of the company officer to train his crew in becoming efficient at “getting water.”

FORWARD VS. REVERSE LAY

When considering your options regarding delivering water, it is important to examine the advantages and disadvantages of forward vs. reverse lay.

Forward lay: from the hydrant to the fire. This is the most basic of all hoselays. The engine stops at a hydrant; the hydrant firefighter dismounts, gathers his tools, grabs the supply line, snubs the hydrant (wraps the hose around the hydrant), steps into an area where the driver can see him in the mirror, and signals for the engine to proceed down the street to the fire.

Advantages The engine has secured its own water source. The attack crews can feel confident in flowing as much water as they need, knowing that the supply is not limited. The hydrant is unobstructed by the apparatus.

Disadvantages The supply line now blocks the street. This is not the most effective or efficient use of the pump. If you are short-staffed, you now must subtract from the actual firefighting crew the person who must be positioned at the hydrant. Should the hydrant be defective, the engine company will have to regroup quickly to find another water source, which may mean dragging additional lengths of four- or five-inch hose down the street to the next hydrant, resulting possibly in a longer delay in attacking the fire. Your unit also will be in the way of the truck company.

Reverse lay: from the fire to the hydrant. This is the next most basic hoselay. For this lay, the hosebed should be set up with female couplings on top of the hose, unless you are using sexless storz couplings. Attack lines should be bulk-loaded in the rear hosebed. The engine pulls into the block, stopping in front of the fire building; the crew dismounts and pulls all of the tools and equipment it will need (or thinks it will need) off the apparatus and places them along the curb. The crew then stretches the initial attack handline. The company officer signals the driver to proceed. The driver moves the apparatus down the street to the nearest hydrant. He then dismounts and makes the connection to the engine himself.

Advantages: The crew stays intact: Nobody is “lost” to the hydrant. This is a much greater and more efficient use of the pump. The engine is moved out of the way for the truck company. Fire attack can be initiated right away. The attack crews can feel confident in flowing as much water as they need, knowing that the supply is not limited. About 150 feet of five-inch supply line (or whatever you are using) can be loaded on the bumper of the engine to make it easier for the driver to position the apparatus and connect to the hydrant.

Disadvantages: The engine and any remaining or forgotten tools and equipment are now down the block. If improperly positioned, the engine is blocking the street.

SUPPORT SPRINKLERS AND STANDPIPES

Firefighting is all about water, lots of water. If your engine is equipped with large-diameter hose (anything bigger than 2 1/2-inch), that is what should be laid in the street (“the portable water main”). The engine must be able to support all operations and any predicted operations (ladder pipes, master streams).

Another unfortunate trend regarding water supply is a a failure to adequately support sprinkler systems and standpipes. Contrary to some urban firefighting myths, fire department connections should be pumped at 150 pounds per square inch (psi), not 75 psi to each inlet. Even when connected to the water supply system, a fire department engine must support sprinklers and standpipes. Failure to properly supply a system can result in the fire’s overcoming the sprinkler system or firefighters facing greater danger on the fire floor while trying to make an attack without the proper amount of water.

The bottom line here is that engine company work, while not rocket science, is a science. It is about our ability to perform hydraulics, the movement of a fluid through pipes and piping, and our chosen fluid is water.

RICHARD A. FRITZ has been an active member of the fire service since 1977. He has served with various career and volunteer fire departments, including in Muscatine and Davenport, IA; Hampton, IL; Carlisle, PA; and Williamsport, MD. He was training captain and battalion chief of training for the High Point (NC) Fire Department and served on the 182TASpGp Illinois Air National Guard. He was director of fire training for the Illinois Fire Service Institute in Champaign, IL.

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