IMPROVING FIREFIGHTER SURVIVAL ON THE FIREGROUND LEADING COMMUNITY RISK REDUCTION

Transcription

1 IMPROVING FIREFIGHTER SURVIVAL ON THE FIREGROUND LEADING COMMUNITY RISK REDUCTION By: Scott R. K. Lawton Battalion Chief Honolulu Fire Department Honolulu, Hawaii An applied research project submitted to the National Fire Academy as part of the Executive Fire Officer Program December 2005

2 CERTIFICATION STATEMENT I hereby certify that this paper constitutes my own product, that where the language of others is set forth, quotation marks so indicate, and that appropriate credit is given where I have used the language, ideas, expressions, or writings of another. Signed: 2

3 ABSTRACT The problem is that the fire service and Honolulu Fire Department (HFD) have focused on rapid intervention teams and not on firefighter survival. Such a problem could have an impact on firefighter s lives and safety due to the time and effort required for a rapid intervention team (RIT) to locate and extricate a downed firefighter. The descriptive method will be used to analyze and answer the following questions: 1. How is the fire service learning to change its cultural behaviors toward firefighter safety? 2. How are the other departments addressing the need to train their personnel in survival on the fireground? 3. How does the Honolulu Fire Department train their personnel in firefighter survival? 4. What are the national standards addressing the need for firefighter survival? The purpose of this research is to create a guideline in firefighter survival for the HFD by reviewing existing guidelines, statistics and a literature review on the topic. 3

4 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT... 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS... 4 INTRODUCTION. 5 BACKGROUND AND SIGNIFICANCE 7 LITERATURE REVIEW. 10 PROCEDURES. 15 RESULTS. 18 DISCUSSION RECOMMENDATIONS.. 31 REFERENCES. 33 APPENDIX A NIOSH FACTORS BY YEAR. 35 APPENDIX B - FIREFIGHTER SURVIVAL SURVEY RESULTS HONOLULU FIRE DEPARTMENT FIREFIGHTER SURVIVAL SOG

5 INTRODUCTION In 2004, 117 Firefighters died in the line of duty, of which 80 were directly related to responding, returning or working at an emergency incident. Of those 80 firefighter fatalities, 30 died on the fireground from collapse, entanglement, trapped, or lost. The advent of a RIT is a great tool to help save a firefighter, if it is activated in a timely manner. The HFD, in 2004, reorganized its Procedures Manual and created a series of standard operating guidelines ( SOG ). The old manual provided a general guideline for a RIT, and the new manual provides a basic outline of the RIT process. More specific documentation on the RIT process is being developed and incorporated into a Fire Suppression SOG. The focus and importance of the RIT is well documented in the Fire Service. Our priority at any fire is to ensure that our personnel are safe, and if they do need assistance we have a process available to help them. The RIT is a reactive process to help rescue firefighters, as we really need to be proactive in our preparation. We need to train our personnel in the component that comes prior to the RIT training, which is firefighter survival or self-rescue. Firefighter survival deals with training our personnel with regard to recognizing and reacting to potential hazardous situations on the fireground so they do not need the services of a RIT. Firefighter survival is the training component that comes before training in the techniques of RIT because they work hand in hand. The problem is that the fire service and HFD have focused on rapid intervention teams and not on firefighter survival, which could have an impact on firefighter s lives and safety due to the time and effort required for a RIT to locate and extricate a downed firefighter. 5

6 The purpose of this research is to determine components of a successful firefighter survival program and to develop a guideline for the Honolulu Fire Department. The descriptive method will be used to analyze and answer the following questions: 1. How is the fire service learning to change its cultural behaviors toward firefighter safety? 2. How are the other departments addressing the need to train their personnel in survival on the fireground? 3. How does the Honolulu Fire Department train their personnel in firefighter survival? 4. What are the national standards addressing the need for firefighter survival? The descriptive method will be used to analyze the issue of firefighter survival. The information gained in answering the questions will be used to formulate a firefighter survival SOG for the Honolulu Fire Department. Research done by the Phoenix Fire Department (2003) that shows that a RIT could take an extended amount of time to locate, package and extricate a downed firefighter. One of the best actions to prevent the need for a RIT is to train our personnel to recognize and react to potential situations that could disorient, entangle, entrap or injure themselves. As noted in the Phoenix Fire Department SOG on Lost/Trapped Firefighter Basic Survival lists, the number 1 basic survival responsibility is Don t get trapped/lost or run out of air. If everyone had the ability to follow this basic rule, then I believe the firefighter fatality statistics would show a dramatic decrease. Thus, having the ability to adhere to that simple 6

7 rule comes with constant training, updated and tested procedures and discipline to follow the procedures. BACKGROUND AND SIGNIFICANCE The HFD is made up of 1,129 uniformed personnel providing service to a population of approximately 1.2 million, over a 604 square mile area of the City and County of Honolulu. The HFD is divided into four divisions; Administrative Services, Planning and Development, Support Services, and Fire Operations, each lead by an Assistant Fire Chief. Personnel in Fire Operations are on a three-platoon system working from 42 fire stations, staffing 42 Engines, 15 Aerials, 2 Rescues, 2 Hazmats, 5 Tankers, 1 Tender, 1 Helicopter and a Fireboat. In 2004, the HFD responded to 33,355 incidents, of which 4,924 of those were for fires. The HFD has been fortunate that no firefighter has been killed in the line of duty while fighting a building fire. The last major highrise fire that HFD was involved in occurred on April 1, 2000 at the First Interstate Bank building. The fire took over three hours to control, utilizing 29 companies and 97 HFD personnel. The significance of the incident was that there were 13 firefighters injured, nine of which were due to smoke inhalation. Those nine firefighters were close calls that could have resulted in fire deaths or career ending injuries. The department is still using the lessons gained from the post incident analysis (PIA) as well as recommendations from the Safety Committee to train and evaluate the process. The Safety Committee is comprised of two members of the Hawaii Fire Fighters Association (HFFA) and two members of the Honolulu Fire Department. The job of the 7

8 Safety Committee is to provide recommendations to the Fire Chief in regards to safety. In general some of the recommendations were: 1. Update the accountability procedure 2. Review the implementation of the ICS 3. Communications 4. Firefighter safety 5. Self Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) SOG 6. Crew integrity Many areas identified have been addressed and corrected, but more needs to be done to ensure that our personnel are safe. Although not specifically identified, the need for a Firefighter Survival SOG is evident, as it would address a majority of the recommendations identified by the committee. Diligent training is needed to ensure our personnel are prepared for the real thing when it happens the next time and we do not repeat the lessons learned. If a RIT is to succeed, it must not only be trained and have the proper equipment, but it must be activated in a timely manner. Activation of a RIT is largely dependent on the firefighter in need of assistance. Depending on the situational awareness of the firefighter in need, the call could come early or not at all. An accurate assessment of one s situation is dependant on training, experience, stress levels, expectations and biases. The expectation that I can get out of this (situation) myself is a common thought process of firefighters in their reluctance to call for help. In 2004, there were 117 line of duty deaths (LODD) according to the USFA report on Firefighter Fatalities in the United States. In the past 10 years, the fire service 8

9 continues to have an average of over 100 firefighter fatalities. Asphyxia is the 4 th leading medial cause of these deaths, which is a direct result of smoke inhalation. 30 firefighters died while working on the fireground of which, 16 died while engaged in a fire attack making it the most hazardous duty. Firefighter Survival is directly related to the course Leading Community Risk Reduction, as the impact of this will have a direct influence on saving HFD personnel at a building fire. A firefighter that is lost, entangled or entrapped is a high risk/low frequency event. It is evident that such events are needed to train and prepare for to limit or eliminate the losses. The creation of a SOG will provide direction and knowledge to our personnel, which will help them accomplish their mission in a safe and effective manner. These same techniques can also be applied by a civilian in need of assistance, which extends the usefulness of a firefighter survival SOG to the entire community in the form of fire education. The mission of the United States Fire Administration (USFA) is to reduce loss of life and economic loss due to fire and related emergencies. Establishing and training to a Firefighter Survival SOG is inline with the mission of the USFA, as this would reduce line of duty deaths (LODD) and allow the firefighters to accomplish the main goal of saving life and property. The development and implementation of the SOG is also inline with the USFA s 5-year operational objective of reducing the loss of life from fire by 15%. The most direct benefit of the SOG will be the safety and survival of HFD s most important resource, its personnel. 9

10 LITERATURE REVIEW The issue of firefighter survival on the fireground has always been of concern with the fire service, but the focus to address the problem has been with the RIT. Although the RIT is an important component to firefighter survival, a more proactive measure would be to train and prepare our personnel to stay out of situations that would require the assistance of a RIT. Applied research papers on the topic of firefighter survival are limited to RIT applications, and not on the specifics of this topic. Using the Learning Resource Center (LRC) at the National Fire Academy (NFA) provided articles on the topic from a variety of periodicals. A literature review of fire department SOG provided a greater insight on the subject matter. The SOG s were gathered in three different ways, the first utilizing the Internet to access fire department websites with SOG s. The second method was to utilize the NFA s Training and Research Data Exchange (TRADE) network. A request was submitted to the administrator of the TRADE site, which was listed on the monthly TRADE group. The third method to gain SOG examples was through a request in a survey sent to 138 fire departments. A review of the Toledo Fire Department s Saving Our Own program provided a greater insight on subject of firefighter survival. The main focus of the program is using actual scenarios from firefighter line of duty deaths in building fires to teach hands on skills to our personnel. In 2003, a Firefighter Disorientation Study was done, which identified several components leading to firefighter fatalities. Firefighter disorientation is loss of direction 10

11 due to the lack of vision at a structure fire. This loss of direction has preceded firefighter fatalities due to smoke inhalation, burns, and traumatic injuries. The study focused on 17 incidents, which resulted in 23 firefighter fatalities. The common elements experienced in all of the incidents include: Occurred in an enclosed structure Aggressive interior attack Prolonged zero visibility conditions Handline separation Loss of company integrity Disorientation Involved in a disorientation sequence The Phoenix Fire Department conducted rapid intervention drills after the loss of Firefighter Brett Tarver in The biggest message of that study was not to get off the fire attack line, If you extend an attack line 150, get 40 off the line and then run out of air, it will take us 22 minutes to get you out of the structure. Their results show that rapid intervention isn t rapid, so we need to be more proactive in teaching firefighter survival to our personnel. Dan Shaw (2004) in an article in Fire Engineering says, Train your firefighter in safety and survival. If the firefighters can mitigate a situation in a fire that they have already faced in a training environment that is one less Mayday that will be transmitted. We need to be proactive, not reactive, to these situations. Firefighter survival and RIT techniques are not governed by standards, so we need to share ideas. 11

12 Rather than relying on a specific team to do rescue, all firefighters should be trained on save our own tactics. There should be no exclusions; this is not an optional specialty, notes John Hinton (2005) in an article about the Phoenix Fire Department s On Deck process of rotating fire crews. The wildland firefighting process has an acronym to remind firefighters to stay safe. The acronym LCES stands for Lookouts, Communications, Escape routes, and Safety zones. It provides a simple method to review safety measures at a fire scene. In general, the lookout is responsible for observing the path of the fire in relation to the crew, the escape route, safety zones and planned work route. This ensures that at least one person is looking at the big picture while the crew tends to the fire. Communications means radio contact with the crew, surrounding crews and the operations chief. Escape routes are planned routes by foot or vehicle to a safety zone. The safety zone is a place of safe refuge from the fire that has been scouted for hazards. The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) has incorporated LCES into their structural firefighting procedures. This provides each firefighter with a quick mental preplan to review while working at a building fire to keep them safe. In 1957, the 10 standard fire orders were developed by a task force to reduce firefighter injuries and fatalities in regards to forest fires by reviewing several fires with firefighter fatalities. These 10 standards are still in use today and are supplemented by 18 Watch Out Situations. This lesson from 1957 could also be utilized today in regards to structural firefighting procedures. Why not create 10 standard fire orders in regards to structural firefighting? 12

13 The author also utilized information gathered during an SCBA air management exercise conducted in Air management is a key component to firefighter survival. This exercise utilized volunteers from the HFD to participate in the Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT) in full personal protective equipment (PPE). The sample provided basic information on participants, with the focus on how long their 3000psi SCBA would last while doing physical firefighting work. The opportunity to interview each participant on how they manage their air supply was the biggest benefit of the exercise. The interview process allowed for the author to present awareness information to each participant on how to practice the rule of air management, which was the topic in an article in Fire Engineering (April 2003). The rule is, know how much air you have used, and manage the amount of air you have left in your bottle so that you leave the hazardous environment before your SCBA s low air alarm begins to ring. The reason you want to ensure you leave prior to your low air alarm activating, is to provide you with a supply of air should you encounter a problem on your way out and still need air. Firefighters tend to run out of air because they are used to a typical house fire situation that usually offers multiple ways out when the bell rings on their SCBA. While this has worked fine for most situations, it will not work if the fire is in a highrise or large warehouse. The low air alarm leaves you no room for activating a contingency plan should you get lost or trapped. In his book, Fire Officer s Handbook Of Tactics, John Norman (1998) recommends three steps that departments can take immediately to help reduce the firefighter fatality and injury rates: 1. Improve hazard awareness and recognition 13

14 2. Provide emergency escape or self-rescue capability 3. Provide rescue capability by deploying rapid intervention teams The first two items deal with preparing our personnel to recognize and react to potential situations to ensure you don t need to utilize the third option. Having a SOG and training to that standard is still best method of keeping our personnel safe. The problem is many departments do not have a Firefighter Survival SOG and therefore cannot train effectively. In Robert Bingham s book (2005) Street Smart Firefighting, he notes that the navy regularly drills on abandoning ship, and sailors on submarines are trained to escape from a stricken sub. Why is it that we send firefighters into burning buildings and do not teach them how to get out under emergency conditions? Fighter pilots also have a specific standard operating procedure in place to activate a mayday call and eject from the plane. Basic lists of emergency situations that could occur in the plane require the pilot to eject, limiting the thought process and speeding up the emergency reaction. IFSTA s Fireground Support Operations notes that if firefighters are to survive inside burning buildings, they must learn to recognize the signs of the impending fire phenomena such as flashover, backdraft and collapse before they develop. Should they fail to recognize these events, they must know the process to initiate a Mayday or be able to escape the situation. One of the inherent problems noted in delaying a reaction to an emergency situation is the thought process that the firefighter can escape without help or that they would face verbal abuse from co-workers for needing help. This delay in notification could cost the firefighter his life or risk serious injury. 14

15 In summary, the RIT is an important factor in saving firefighter s lives. A vital component of the RIT is firefighter survival training. Firefighter survival training is the step that comes before the RIT, and if trained properly, will help to make the RIT more successful when implemented. PROCEDURES The procedures used to determine the solutions to the problem of improving firefighter survival in the HFD were first to identify the problem, which was that there is no guideline for firefighter survival. Based on this identification, the research was initiated to provide a solution that would better prepare firefighters to stay safe on the fireground. The end goal of this research is to provide a SOG on firefighter survival that provides a simple methodology for personnel to follow. The timing of this research coincides with the both the creating of a RIT SOG and the research done on SCBA air management in The research project is designed to incorporate the air management lessons learned into the firefighter survival SOG. This natural progression would then lead to a stronger RIT SOG, as these baseline programs would support the build-up. The literature review for the subject matter was conducted at the National Fire Academy s (NFA) Learning Resource Center (LRC) in April of 2005 will attending Leading Community Risk Reduction course. A review of pertinent publications and periodicals was conducted. A majority of the information was found in the related topic of RIT, with limited focus on individual firefighter survival. 15

16 The use of the internet to gain information from a variety of sources provided a good resource on the subject matter. Information was gathered in the form of reports from the USFA website. The National Institute for Safety and Health (NIOSH) website also was used extensively to gather statistics and review reports. A review of SOG s from a variety of departments greatly contributed to the creation of a SOG for the HFD. The following departments were gracious enough to share their guidelines: Los Angeles Fire Department California Phoenix Fire Department Arizona Tempe Fire Department Arizona Yakima Fire Department Washington Baltimore County Fire Department Maryland Mesa Fire Department Arizona Mnjinkaning Fire Rescue Service Canada Rogers Fire Department - Arkansas Loudoun County Fire-Rescue Virginia Coppell Fire Department Texas A survey was conducted on firefighter survival using and the internet. 138 representatives of fire departments, both large and small, were sent the survey. Of that, 49 personnel visited the survey site and 35 personnel participated in the survey. There was a 25% participation rate, which is not a significant amount. The results of the survey did however provide the author with numerous SOG s on firefighter survival and other 16

17 related information. The survey asked 10 questions in an attempt to determine if firefighter survival training was a part of their department. The following questions were asked: 1. How large is your department? 2. Does your department have a firefighter survival SOG? 3. Does your department have a RIT/RIC/FAST SOG? 4. Does your department have a firefighter survival program to teach and review tactics? 5. How do you train your personnel in firefighter survival? 6. How often is the survival training done? 7. Is the survival training done at (where) 8. Are all of your personnel assigned personal radios? 9. Do you train your personnel in the rule of air management for SCBA use? 10. What are the components of your survival program? 11. If you are willing to share your department s SOG on firefighter survival, please send it to the authors account. A sample of the survey is located in the Appendix B. A review of NIOSH Line of Duty Death (LODD) reports was conducted to identify common contributing factors to firefighter deaths on the fireground. These common components will be reviewed to look for trends. The components will be compared to the recommendations made by NIOSH over ten years ago. 17

18 RESULTS The results of this applied research project are derived from the literature review and the procedures conducted. The research questions were answered by reviewing materials from the internet, standard operating guidelines, books, periodicals, reports and an online survey. To answer question 1, How is the fire service learning to change its cultural behaviors toward firefighter safety? The data still shows that in the last 10 years we suffer through an average of 100 firefighter fatalities a year. We also know that approximately 50% of those fatalities are a direct or indirect result of our physical condition. There have been many life safety initiatives to improve the wellness and fitness of firefighters, but evaluating the effectiveness of those initiatives is a difficult task. These changes are dependent on the firefighter s own initiative to want to change his lifestyle in regards to eating right and staying physically fit. Firefighters come into the department with long established habits and routines on wellness and fitness, which are not easily changed. Firefighters don t start out in the fire service with training on how to fight fires or stay safe on the fireground, we teach them that. We train our personnel to develop rituals and routines so their actions are automatic when working at an incident. We should be able to address that 50% of firefighter fatalities that occur because our actions or inactions taken on the fireground. There are a number of organizations that collect data and organize it in an effort to share information that could reduce the number of firefighter fatalities in the future. 18

19 These organizations provide information that should be used in training and incorporated into department procedures, so we don t repeat fatal lessons from the past. One of the most recognized organizations working to share information on reducing firefighter injuries and deaths is the National Institute for Safety and Health (NIOSH). The United States Fire Administrations (USFA) mission is to reduce life and economic losses due to fire and related emergencies through leadership, advocacy, coordination and support. There are a host of other fire service related organizations on the internet that focus on firefighter safety such as firefighterclosecall.com, everyonegoeshome.com, the national firefighter near-miss reporting system, and firehouse.com. Fire service periodicals such as Firehouse, Fire Engineering and Fire Rescue have also provided critical information to the fire service on firefighter survival. There s so much information that it can be difficult to process it into absorbable data for our personnel. National Institute for Safety and Health (NIOSH) Firefighter and Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program conducts investigations on selected firefighter line of duty deaths to formulate recommendations to for preventing future deaths and injuries. In a review of NIOSH reports from 2000 to 2004, the following factors in Table 1 were identified as contributing to firefighter fatalities on the fireground. The data used to compile this information is found in Appendix B. At this time, the fire service is working hard to change cultural behaviors in regards to firefighter safety. Initial actions focused on a broad scope of providing information on an organizational level that departments can use in the form of statistics, training and resources. The current trend is to make the information available at the company or firefighter level. This allows them to be more proactive in getting 19

20 information and lessons learned to keep them safe on the fireground. The information provided to the firefighters is in a user friendly format that is coupled with trust and reality. NIOSH has a goal of preventing injuries and fatalities in the fire service, and does so by providing information on LODD. NIOSH analysis selected LODD and provides factors that contributed to the fatality. All of the factors are listed as contributing to the death of a firefighter; many can be limited or controlled with a firefighter survival SOG. In review of the one factor with the most times cited, is a lack of or failure to follow standard operating procedures (SOP). This key issue could help to reduce firefighter fatalities, as SOP s are related to every other factor listed in the recommendations. Table 1 lists the factors from NIOSH reports contributing to firefighter fatalities from 2000 to Table 1 - NIOSH Factors Contributing to Firefighter Fatalities Identified Factors Number of times cited Accountability 11 Communications 15 IC Risk Management 10 IC Size-up 17 Lost or Trapped 7 Medical evaluation/stress test 9 Physical Conditioning 10 Safety Officer 12 SCBA 15 SOP s 21 Team Continuity 7 Thermal Imaging Camera 9 Training 9 20

21 NIOSH presented a fire fighter alert publication in 1994 to help prevent injuries and deaths. The alert stated in the header Fire departments must review their safety programs and emergency operating procedures; failures to establish and follow these programs and procedures are resulting in injuries and deaths of fire fighters. The alert lists 7 areas for fire departments (FD) to follow and 5 specific recommendations for fire fighters (FF) to implement. Table 2 illustrates the many common factors from the to those in Table 2 Comparison of factors in 1994 to 2004 Identified Factors in 1994 Identified Factors in 2004 (FD) Establish & implement SOP for ICS YES (FD) Establish and implement SOP for YES Accountability (FD) Establish and implement SOP for YES SCBA Maintenance (FD) Use buddy system whenever YES firefighters use SCBA (FD) Provide and use personal alert safety YES systems (PASS) (FD) Review life safety code to ensure NO elevators are fire service equipped (FD) Provide a rehab process for firefighters YES (FF) Follow all policies and procedures YES (FF) Wear and activate PASS YES (FF) Wear appropriate personal protective YES equipment (PPE) Check your SCBA to be sure it s working YES (FF) Drink fluids frequently and be aware YES of the signs of heat stress 21

22 From 1994 to 2004, most of the critical factors NIOSH recommended we address were repeated. This means the fire service isn t heeding the lessons learned from the past. Of course there are many different variables affecting this simple comparison, but this is a good snapshot of how we re failing to succeed in implementing the recommendations provided to us. How are the other departments addressing the need to train their personnel in survival on the fireground? The review of 11 standard operating procedures, training guidelines and programs provided a snapshot of how the situation is being addressed. This information was reviewed to assist in the development of SOG for HFD. The firefighter survival survey provided a random selection of how fire departments are conducting training in the area of firefighter survival. In regards to survey question 1, How large is your department? The following were the response results: 200 or less members 63% 500 or less members 11% 800 or less members 0% 1000 or less members 9% More than 1000 members 17% The question was asked to ascertain the size complexity of the departments and to see if a correlation between size and training abilities existed. Unfortunately, this would require a more in-depth study of the respondents, which is not in the scope of this research. Survey question 2 asked, Does your department have a Firefighter Survival SOG? The following were the response results: 22

23 Yes 60% No 40% A large percentage of respondents have a SOG, which will be compared with those who also have a RIT SOG to identify if there s a correlation between the two. Survey question 3 asked, Does your department have a RIT/RIC/FAST SOG to rescue a firefighter in need of assistance? The following were the response results: Yes 89% No 11% As a simple observation, the focus on RIT is greater than that of firefighter survival training. Although many RIT SOG have a component of firefighter survival incorporated into the process. This survey failed to account for that possibility due to the limited scope of the survey. Survey question 4 asked, Does your department have a firefighter self-survival program to teach and review tactics? The following were the response results: Yes 85% No 15% This question was formulated to determine if there was a support system for the firefighter survival SOG. If you don t provide training to effectively re-enforce and teach firefighter survival, then you ll have limited success when it comes time to actually initiate the SOG. Survey question 5 asked, How do you train your personnel in firefighter selfsurvival? The following were the response results: Classroom 20% Practical hands-on with props 26% 23

24 Scenario 11% All of the above 74% The majority of training for firefighter survival utilizes both classroom and practical training. This is the most effective method of reinforcing the firefighter survival SOG, so your reaction at a real incident will be second nature. Survey question 6 asked, How often is self-survival training done? The following were the response results: Quarterly 6% Semi-annually 9% Annually- 44% Once in recruit class 15% Other 26% Determining if training is a random event or a routine scheduled event was the reason for this question. Like most of the fire service certification processes, an annual training event is all that s required to maintain the certification. There is a large percentage of departments who only offer firefighter survival training in recruit class and never again. Survey question 7 asked, Is the self-survival training done at: The following were the response results: Company level (at the station) - 23% Battalion level (multicompany drill) - 9% Department level (Training Bureau coordinates) - 34% All of the above 34% 24

25 Determining where the training is occurring provides insight into how consistent and uniform the training is. Company level training at the station as opposed to department level training by the department s training center is a big difference in how the training message is presented. By far, the department training will provide a consistent, uniform training process, which will result in a consistent application of the SOG. Survey question 8 asked, Are all your personnel assigned a portable radio? The following were the response results: Yes 66% No 34% Survey question 9 asked, Do you train your personnel in the Rule of Air Management for SCBA use? The following were the response results: Yes 79% No 21% A component of firefighter survival is having a process to manage your SCBA air supply, and not relying on the low air alarm to initiate an exit from the IDLH. Most departments have a process that duplicate or mirrors the rule of air management. Survey question 10 asked, What are the components of your self-survival program? Which resulted in 29 different personal responses, as this was not a multiple-choice type of question. Each department has a different focus on this type of training, which is due to the variations that each of them experience due to department size, equipment, environment and other factors. The last survey question was, If you have a SOG regarding firefighter self-survival and are willing to share it, please send it to the author. Of the 11 responses, only 4 were 25

26 able to share their SOG. The other 7 respondents, they either didn t have a SOG or didn t have anything in writing. How does the Honolulu Fire Department train their personnel in firefighter survival? As opposed to a specific program on firefighter survival, the HFD initiates training for the recruits in several basic areas such as fire behavior, building construction, personal protective equipment, forcible entry, ventilation, ropes and knots, fire hose, fire streams, and fire control. Each of these areas contains information to prepare our personnel to be aware of the many watch out situations that can occur on the fireground. The recruits are IFSAC certified to the firefighter 1 level when their training is completed. The NFPA 1001, Standard for Firefighter Professional Qualifications has the following requirement, which has relevance in the area of firefighter survival: Conduct a search and rescue in a structure operating as a member of a team, given an assignment, obscured vision conditions, personal protective equipment, a flashlight, forcible entry tools, hose lines, and ladders when necessary, so that ladders are correctly placed when used, all assigned areas are searched, all victims are located and removed, team integrity is maintained, and team members safety including respiratory protection is not compromised. Although the listed skills are specific to the search and rescue of a victim in a structure, the lessons will serve the firefighter in staying safe while working in a variety of assignments on the fireground. The two rescue companies in the HFD are utilized to provide a technician level RIT at our highrise and other high-risk target hazard fires. Each member of the rescue company 26

27 has successfully completed the HFD Rescue Basic Training (RBT) course to ensure consistency in basic operations is maintained. The training for firefighter survival for operations companies is done at the company or battalion level. At this time, the RIT procedure is being developed to provide a process for all personnel in operations. At this time, there is no SOG in the HFD addressing firefighter survival. The recent awards of grants have provided the HFD with funds to provide specific RIT equipment and an upgrade to our MSA SCBA s. The RIT SOG will need to incorporate this new equipment to the RIT process as well as the air management and firefighter survival information. What are the national standards addressing the need for firefighter survival? The most well known national standard affecting the safety of firefighters is the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) respiratory standard 28 CFR, Parts 1910 and This new mandate is commonly referred to as the 2-in/2-out rule, and is a federal mandate as of April 8, Some of the basic highlights of this standard are: Once firefighters initiate an interior attack on a structure fire, OSHA considers the interior environment to be immediately dangerous to life and health (IDLH). Any structure fire beyond the incipient stage is considered to be an IDLH atmosphere by OSHA. All personnel engaged in interior structural suppression operations beyond the incipient stage must use SCBA s, work in teams of two or more, and maintain voice or visual contact with one another at all times. 27

28 OSHA requires at least one team of two properly equipped and trained personnel be present outside a structure before any team or teams of personnel enter a structure fire. The exterior team shall be comprised of one member who is specifically responsible for accountability of the interior team(s), and if necessary, initiate a rescue. The other designated person of the exterior team can perform other roles (i.e., incident commander, etc.) as long as those roles can be immediately abandoned without placing any personnel at additional risk if a rescue or other assistance is necessary. Therefore, an initial interior attack on a structure fire requires a minimum of four personnel before an interior attack can be initiated. If an immediate action is necessary to save a life, an exception or deviation to the 2-in/2-out rule is permissible. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) provides standards for the fire service that can be adopted by departments in whole or utilized to provide direction and research on specific fire service issues. The NFPA is looked to as the industry standard in regards to fire service standards. The following NFPA standards were reviewed to gain better insight into the issue of firefighter survival: NFPA 1404, Standard for Fire Service Respiratory Protection Training NFPA 1500, Standard on Fire Department Occupational Health and Safety Program NFPA 1404 highlights the requirement for departments to have an SCBA program to and ongoing training to reinforce the safe use of the SCBA. In regards to the 28

29 topic of firefighter survival, the standard also requires that firefighters regularly train to address emergency situations in which the SCBA may fail. Additionally, it requires that members be familiar with the point of no return theory to prevent entrance into hazardous areas that are located beyond safe boundaries. NFPA 1500 highlights the importance of not utilizing the buddy breathing technique to assist a firefighter in need. The result will more than likely lead to two firefighters in need of assistance instead of just one. Further requirements of this standard in regards to firefighter survival include thorough training in survival techniques, controlled breathing, and stress management. Additionally, the standard requires that the incident commander should automatically integrate fire fighter safety and survival into the regular command functions. DISCUSSION The course Leading Community Risk Reduction is focused on making a difference in the community by addressing an issue that has resulted in a significant loss of life. This is basic risk management, which is the primary focus of Gordon Graham. He notes that risk management is done on two levels, organizational and fireground risk management. He says, the organizational risk management includes people, policies, training, supervision and discipline, and operational risk management deals with a specific event or incident. There is also a third level of risk management, which is done by the individual firefighter whether he knows it or not. This third level is key to ensuring our personnel make appropriate decisions on the fireground. The same mistakes are constantly repeated on the fireground, but one of these will result in an injury or 29

30 death. The only time you learn from the mistakes of another is when they end in tragedy, as told to Gordon Graham by his professor, Chaytor Mason. We need to learn from these continuously reoccurring events before we lose or injure more of our personnel. The survey yielded a snapshot of information on how firefighter survival is addressed in selected departments. There s a wide range of departments surveyed, which yields many uncontrollable variables that skew the results. Some basic information found in the results showed that 60% of the departments surveyed already have a firefighter survival SOG. The individual components of the SOG s vary, but the important fact is that they are addressing a need. The survey also showed that a majority of departments (89%) have a RIT SOG, which is to be expected. But, why doesn t the other 11% have a RIT SOG, which is troubling and dangerous. Of those departments that currently have a firefighter survival SOG, they back it up with training in the classroom, with props and evolutions. In review of the topic and attempting to gain insight into how other departments are addressing the issue, the question of how often the training is done was asked. Training is key to building ritual and routine, which will result in the desired action when really needed. The alarming result is that 15% of the departments only provide the training once in recruit class and never again. One of the consistent recommendations identified in the NIOSH Firefighter and Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program reports is for all firefighters to have a portable radio. Once a firefighter gets lost or separated from his crew, he needs to have the ability to communicate his situation to the incident commander. The survey asked 30

31 that question and 66% of the departments provide each individual with a radio. The next question should have been how do you train your personnel to utilize the radios? or Do you train all your personnel in the incident command system (ICS)? There are many firefighters who felt they don t need to know the ICS because at their level, it didn t concern them. Knowledge of the ICS is key to ensuring you re can communicate to the right individual when you need to. One of the last questions on the survey was Do you practice the rule of air management?, which had a result of 79% in the positive. The results show a majority of departments are aware of the need to follow the rule of SCBA air management. The alarming issue is that 21% of the departments may rely on the low air alarm as a trigger to evacuate the immediately dangerous to life and health (IDLH) environment. Again, there are many variables that this survey can t account for, but being aware of how much air you have and how much you need to get out of the IDLH is critical to survival. Firefighter survival is a task level skill that everyone must be trained on, we must teach them what to do and when to do it. Ultimately, survival is dependent on what you were taught, your actions to save yourself, and the command support that comes with affecting a rescue. The fire service, through training, procedures and discipline can have a direct effect on reducing firefighter fatalities and injuries. RECOMMENDATIONS The recommendation based on the literature review, survey results and NIOSH statistics is that the Honolulu Fire Department should establish a firefighter survival standard operating guideline. The guideline should be a component of the RIT SOG to ensure that the RIT will have a greater rate of success when activated. The firefighter 31

32 survival SOG must be reinforced with practical training and discipline to ensure it becomes an automatic routine and is a viable procedure. Lessons learned from the past should be incorporated in to the SOG and continually updated as needed. The direct impact will be a reduction in firefighter injuries and fatalities on the fireground. A recommendation is that the fire service develops standard orders and watch out situations for use in structural firefighting procedures. These universal standards can be applied by any sized department, volunteer or paid to ensure firefighters are safe. This wouldn t limit additional procedures based on the needs or environments that individual departments have. It would help to provide a national standard that can t be misinterpreted due to the simplicity of the standard order. Regular training and discipline would ensure that these basics become a ritual and routine of doing business. A quote from Admiral Arleigh Burke, of the U.S. Navy found in Jim McCormick s Fire Notes books, Firefighter Survival, In the heat of battle you don t remember very much. You don t think very fast. You act by instinct, which is really training. So you ve got to train for battle so that you will react exactly the way you did in training. The last recommendation is for firefighters to continue to incorporate the lessons learned from others to ensure we don t suffer the same consequences of the past. It s not enough to just read about these lessons, we need to constantly train and update our training to ensure our outcomes at an incident are positive. The need to change our behavior in regards to following our procedures and training is constantly highlighted by our firefighter fatality statistics of an average of 100 a year. 32

33 References Bernocco, Steve, et al., (April, 2003) Train in the rule of air management, Fire Engineering, pp Bingham, R. (2005) Street Smart Firefighting. Vienna, Virginia; Valley Press.\ Final Report Southwest Supermarket Fire, March 14, 2001, # , Phoenix Fire Department Graham, Gordon. (2001). Fire Department Operations: Understanding The Discipline of Risk Management. Firenuggets.com, Retrieved July 7, 2005 from Hinton, John. (August 2005) Rapid Improvement, Fire Rescue Kolomay, R. & Hoff, R. (2003). Firefighter Rescue & Survival. Tulsa, Oklahoma; Penn Well Corporation. Kreis, S. (2003). Rapid intervention isn t rapid. Firetimes.com, Retrieved August 17, 2004 from McCormack, Jim & Pressler, Bob. Firefighter Survival. Fire Notes Mora, William A. US Firefighter Disorientation Study National Wildfire Coordinating Group, 10 Standard Fire Orders. Retrieved September 15, 2005 from NIOSH Publication (1994) Preventing Injuries and Deaths of Firefighters. Publication 33

34 CDC.Com, Retrieved on July 7, 2005 from Norman, John (1998). Fire Officer s Handbook of Tactics. Saddlebrook, NJ.;Penn Well Publishing NFPA (2002) NFPA 1001: Standard for Firefighter Professional Qualifications. Quincy, MA. National Fire Protection Association NFPA (2002) NFPA 1404: Standard for Fire Service Respiratory Protection Training. Quincy, MA. National Fire Protection Association NFPA (2002) NFPA 1500: Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program. Quincy, MA. National Fire Protection Association Shaw, Dan (2004) Image is Everything, Fire Engineering.com. Retrieved on July 15, 2005 from www. Fire Engineering imageiseverything.htm Toledo Fire And Rescue Department Training Bureau (1998) Saving Our Own Program manual. Toledo, OH United States Fire Administration, Firefighter Fatalities in the United States in fa Williams, J., & Stambaugh, H. (2003, March) Rapid Intervention Teams And How to Avoid Needing Them, Technical Report (USFA-TR-123) 34

35 APPENDIX A NIOSH Factors 2000 Factors F F F F F F F TOTALS Accountability X X X 3 Communications/Radios X X X X X 5 IC - Risk Management X 1 IC -size up X X X X 4 Lost/Trapped X 1 Medical Eval/Stress Test X 1 Physical conditioning X 1 Safety Officer X X 2 SCBA X X X X X X X 7 SOP's X X X X X X 6 Team Continuity 0 Thermal Imaging Camera X X 2 Training X X 2 35

36 NIOSH Factors 2001 Factors F F F F F F F F F F TOTAL Accountability X X X 3 Communications/Radios X X X 3 IC - Risk Management X X 2 IC -size up X X X X 4 Lost/Trapped X X X 3 Medical Eval/Stress X X X X 4 Physical conditioning X X X X 4 Safety Officer X X X 3 SCBA X X X X X 5 SOP's X X X X 4 Team Continuity X X X 3 Thermal Image Camera X X 2 Training X X 2 36

37 Factors NIOSH Factors TOTAL Accountability X X X 3 Communications/Radios X X X X X 5 IC - Risk Management X X X X 4 IC -size up X X X X X 5 Lost/Trapped X X X 3 Medical Eval/Stress X 1 Physical conditioning X X 2 Safety Officer X X X X X X X 7 SCBA X X X 3 SOP's X X X X X X X X X 9 Team Continuity X X X 3 Thermal Image Camera X X X 3 Training X X X X 4 37

38 NIOSH Factors 2003 & 2004 Factors F F F F F F F TOTALS Accountability X X 2 Communications/Radios X X 2 IC - Risk Management X X X 3 IC -size up X X X X 4 Lost/Trapped 0 Medical Eval/Stress Test X X X 3 Physical conditioning X X X 3 Safety Officer X 1 SCBA 0 SOP's X X 2 Team Continuity X 1 Thermal Imaging Camera X X 2 Training X 1 38

39 Firefighter Self-Survival Survey Results 1. How large is your department? a. 200 or less 63% b. 500 or less 11% c. 800 or less 0% d or less 9% e. More than % 2. Does your department have a firefighter self-survival SOG? a. Yes 60% b. No 40% 3. Does your department have a RIT/RIC/FAST SOG to rescue a firefighter in need of assistance? a. Yes 89% b. No 11% 4. Does your department have a firefighter self-survival program to teach and review tactics? a. Yes 85% b. No 15% 5. How do you train your personnel in firefighter self-survival? a. Classroom 20% b. Practical hands-on, with props 26% c. Scenario 11% d. No training done 0% e. All of the above 74% f. Other (please specify) 39