“There was a structure fire at a commercial structure still under construction. During suppression efforts the safety officer was completing another walk around when a cinder block wall collapsed onto the safety officer…”
The legendary Frank Brannigan said any building on fire is a building under demolition. The building under construction that catches fire exponentially reinforces that statement. Firefighters arriving at the scene of working fires in a building under construction should be wary of all aspects of the incident. Early, catastrophic collapse should be an expectation, not a surprise. Armed with that mindset, establishing collapse zones and ensuring personnel do not enter those zones are critical to keeping personnel out of harm’s way. Once you have read the entire account (CLICK HERE), consider the following:
- The safety officer in this incident becomes the victim. How would you characterize the ISO’s situational awareness in this incident, high or low? Explain your answer.
- What “mode” does your department take when arriving at the scene of a structure fire in a structure that is under construction; offensive or defensive? Why?
- If this incident occurred in your department, what follow-up actions would be taken and why?
- How are your department’s incident scene safety officers selected?
- All elements being equal, which type of wall collapse presents the greatest potential for debris being thrown the farthest, 90 degree? curtain fall? Or inward/outward?
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.
