Standard Operating Procedures S.O.P. Sample Template Drafted by: Oklahoma State Firefighters Association Educational Advisory Committee

Standard Operating Procedures S.O.P. Sample Template Drafted by: Oklahoma State Firefighters Association Educational Advisory Committee

** Remember Safety First ** INTRODUCTION Remember, the following document was developed by this committee to serve as a model for fire departments to use when developing their own Standard Operating Procedures. It is impossible to write one set of Standard Operating Procedures (SOP s), Rules and Regulations that will meet then needs of all departments. Therefore, each department will need to modify this document to meet their own needs. This is not intended as an all-inclusive document. Fire departments may identify the need for additional SOP s, Rules and Regulations to meet their needs. Every fire department needs a set of rules and regulations for their personnel. Rules and regulations should list the duties and responsibilities of everyone on the department. Good rules and regulations help all personnel understand what is expected of them. Standard Operating Procedures are designed to help fire department personnel perform their duties and responsibilities. Standard operating procedures are to a fire department what a game plan is to a football team. Like the football team s game plan, the fire department s standard operating procedures need to be flexible enough to be changed when the situation warrants. SOP s, Rules and Regulations need to be reviewed and continually updated to meet the changing needs of the fire department. In order for Standard Operating Procedures to be effective, the fire department must use an incident command system, develop pre-emergency plans and implement a comprehensive training program. SOP GUIDELINES Standard Operating Procedures are guidelines that can be used by Fire Departments. Before their adoption, a Fire Department must do a pre-fire plan that will establish water supplies, mutual aid and other agencies or resources.

MUTUAL AID AGREEMENT MODEL DATE: MUTUAL AID AGREEMENT: To: The Fire Department agrees to respond to any calls for assistance from cities or towns within County, as specified in this agreement. We will respond with equipment and staffing as specified within this agreement, upon a call for assistance from the County Commissioners, Mayor, City Manager or Fire Chief. District 1 District 2 District 3 Mayor City Manager Fire Chief

FOR This agreement entered into this day of, between the fire departments of, Oklahoma and, Oklahoma. The purpose of this agreement is to secure for each, the benefit of mutual assistance as needed in times of emergencies. It is agreed that: 1. By request of an authorized representative both fire departments agree to dispatch equipment and personnel to a point with the jurisdiction of the requesting department. 2. Dispatch of equipment and personnel pursuant to this agreement is subject to the following conditions: A. Requests for aid shall include a statement of the amount and type of equipment and/or personnel requested; and shall specify the location and to whom the equipment and/or personnel are to report. B. Each fire department retains the final authority to release requested equipment and/or personnel for mutual aid. C. The responding organization shall report to the location and person specified in paragraph A: above, and shall be subject to the orders of that official. 3. A responding organization shall be released from service by an authorized representative of the requesting organization as specified by the following conditions: A. When their services are no longer required. B. When notified that mutual aid units are needed in their own jurisdiction. In this event, mutual aid companies shall not leave their assignment until properly relieved or released by an authorized representative of the requesting organization. 4. It is the intent of this agreement that the liability for personal injury and equipment loss or damage is retained by each organization regardless of the location of fire department operations. 5. Personnel acting for either department under this agreement will, at the time of such action, be an employee or volunteer of their own department. FOR THE FIRE DEPARTMENT FOR THE FIRE DEPARTMENT

Standard Operating Procedures DRAFT COPY by: Oklahoma State Firefighters Association - Educational Advisory Committee I. Chain of Command: A. Must be established within each fire department. B. At all emergencies the officer/firefighter in charge shall act as the Incident Commander. The person s responsibilities as the Incident Commander shall continue until an organized transition of command to another qualified firefighter is complete. II. General Provisions and Responsibilities: A. The first responding apparatus shall have at least firefighters on board before leaving the station unless specifically amended by this SOP; or after due consideration, the officer in charge deems it necessary. Fire departments shall consult NFPA 1500 to identify the extent of compliance they can accomplish. The items of compliance should be written in local SOP s. B. All firefighters arriving at the station, after responding apparatus have left, shall contact the incident commander for instructions prior to responding to the incident. C. Full NFPA compliant protective clothing and positive pressure SCBA shall be worn for any hazardous atmospheric situations, interior firefighting, vehicle fires, overhaul and salvage. Fire departments are urged to consult NFPA 1500 on Protective Clothing to identify the extent of compliance they can accomplish. The items of compliance should be written into the local SOP s. D. Interior fire attacks shall be made with a charged hose line of no less than 1 1/2 inches with back- up hoselines of equal or larger sizes. E. At all structure fires, the gas meter leading to the involved structure should be shut off. F. If electricity is to be shut off, it shall be done at the master switch. Meters shall not be pulled. Call the utility company responsible for service.

III. Truck responses and positioning for a fire in the city involving structures. A. Incident commander must set up. 1. Pumpers:,,, and. 2. Tankers:,,, and. 3. Additional manpower:,, and. 4. If additional equipment only is needed, call,, and. B. Respond Unit # (pumper, Unit # (tanker) and Unit # (tanker) to the fire. 1. Set up Unit # to draft from portable tanker. 2. Dump water off Unit # into portable tanks and commence water shuttle. 3. Unload equipment from Unit # while dumping water into portable tanks and commence water shuttle. C. Respond Unit #, Unit # to the fire. 1. Respond then with (tankers, aerials, other vehicles for manpower transportation). 2. Respond Unit # if needed to extinguish spot fires caused by cinders. D. If the water supply warrants a tanker shuttle operation, established SOP should be followed. E. Staging of mutual aid pumpers: 1. First arriving mutual aid pumper shall proceed to fire and hook up to available fire hydrant unless otherwise directed by the Incident Commander. 2. Second and third arriving mutual aid pumpers shall proceed to fill sites unless otherwise directed by the Incident Commander. F. Staging of mutual aid tankers shall be directed to the dump site. 1. All responding mutual aid tankers shall be directed to the dump site. 2. Once they have dumped their water they should commence water shuttle.

3. The Incident Commander shall assign the tankers to fill a site. 4. The Incident Commander shall appoint a Fill Site Commander to direct the filling operations at each site used. 5. The Incident Commander shall appoint a Dump Site Commander to direct the dumping operations. IV. Truck response and positioning for a fire in the city involving structures with fire flows of less than 1,000 gpm shall be known as Plan #2. A. Respond with Pumper, Pumper and Tanker 1. Fires in first half of development shall be handled with a quick hit froma a 1 ½ inch preconnect on tanker. Pumper shall drop hose load and equipment and hook up to the highest rated of the two nearest fire hydrants. Pumper shall drop hose and equipment and hook up to the second highest rated of the two nearest fire hydrants. 2. Fires where there is near total involvement shall warrant the same staging as for those fires in the first half of development with the exception that there shall be no offensive attack (interior attack) made by the hose lines on the tanker. 3. Brush Pumper may be used to extinguish any spot fires that may occur due to cinders. V. Truck response for mutual aid structure fires in other cities: A. Respond pumpers. B. If water shuttle assistance is requested, respond Unit #, Unit # and Unit #. Develop an SOP for mutual aid to other cities following ISO regulations, according to your department s capabilities. VI. Truck response for rural structure: A. Respond Unit #, Unit # and Unit # to fire scene, according to ISO rating for your city. 1. If fire is in an early stage of development, use a quick hit with a 1 ½ inch on Unit #.

2. If major fire involvement, set up portable tanks and begin a water shuttle. a. Unit # at fill site. b. Unit # at portable tanks. 3. Call in mutual aid for additional tankers, pumpers and manpower, if needed. VII. Truck response for rural ground cover fire A. Respond Units, and according to ISO for your City. 1. Use Unit # and Unit # to fight fire. 2. Use Unit # to fill fighting unit unless it is needed to fight fire. VIII. SOP s should also be established for vehicle accidents or Emergency Medical Service according to your capabilities. IX. In all situations portable lighting shall be considered if darkness will create a problem. X. The Incident Commander may alter response procedures if the situation warrants a change.

Fire Department Response Levels Level I: Level II: Level III: Extremely limited firefighting capabilities a. Small Pump unit (brush only) b. Inadequate personal protective equipment (PPE) c. Inadequate staffing for most operations (usually 2-5) d. Inadequate training for structural firefighting Minimal firefighting capabilities a. NFPA 1901 pumping unit (Class A Pumper) b. Limited PPE (NFPA compliant) c. Minimal staffing to conduct structural firefighting 1. Interior attack = 4 6 2. Defensive operation = 2 5 d. Minimal staffing to conduct structural firefighting Adequate capabilities for most fireground operations a. Multiple NFPA 1901 pumping units (Class A ) b. Adequate PPE (NFPA compliant) for most operations c. Adequate staffing for most operations d. Adequate to extensive training for most operations

SOP S FOR WILDLAND FIRES 1. Establish Incident Command. 2. Identify equipment and staffing needs. 3. Request mutual aid if necessary. 4. Insure appropriate protective clothing is worn by all personnel on scene (structural protective clothing or approved wildland protective clothing). NOTE: Fire departments are encouraged to consider respiratory protection for firefighters operating on wildland fires. SCBA s provide the best protection, but due to the disadvantages of weight and time limitations, respirators with appropriate filters may be considered. 5. Use one brush unit as fire attack and one to follow for clean- up. 6. AVOID DRIVING INTO SMOKE! (if driving into smoke is necessary, use headlights and warning lights) 7. Park apparatus upwind of fire with apparatus parked in direction of escape route. 8. Use four- wheel drive during off- road firefighting. 9. Use natural fire breaks to your advantage, if possible. 10. Fight fire from and drive in the burned area. 11. If the fire overtakes your vehicle, wet the grass around the brush unit, close windows and shut the doors until the fire has gone by.

SOP s FOR EMS RESPONSE SPECIAL NOTE: EMS activities within Oklahoma fall under the jurisdiction of the Okahoma State Department of Health (OSDH), and the Oklahoma Department of Labor (ODOL). Fire Departments should refer to applicable state policies and regulations prior to writing EMS related SOP s. All SOP s adopted by fire departments should conform to the requirements of the OSDH and the ODOL. ODOL requires an Exposure Control Plan for every emergency response agency. These SOP s were not developed to meet this requirement. Purpose: To ensure that proper procedures are taken for maximum protection against contracting and/or transmitting communicable diseases. For the purpose of these procedures exposure is defined as, when blood or other body fluids visibly contaminated with blood comes in contact with an open wound, non-intact skin or mucous membranes during the performance of normal job duties. I. PERSONAL PROTECTION EQUIPMENT A. Gloves and Hand Disinfectant 1. Disposable latex gloves shall be worn on all medical emergency responses. 2. Structural firefighting gloves shall be worn over latex gloves whenever sharp or rough surfaces may be encountered, such as in an automobile accident. 3. Handling personal items such as pens, combs and touching exposed portions of your body should be avoided while wearing gloves. 4. Gloves that have been contaminated should be removed as soon as possible, avoiding contact with the skin and disposed of in a bio-hazard waste receptacle/bag. Then hands should be cleansed with a disinfectant. B. Masks, Eyewear and Gowns 1. Shall be worn on all emergency vehicles that respond to medical emergencies. 2. These protective barriers shall be worn in accordance with the level of exposure that is encountered (minor lacerations would not require the level of protection that a wound that has blood spurting from it would require). C. Resuscitation Equipment 1. Disposable airway equipment or resuscitation bags should be used during artificial ventilation of trauma victims. 2. A pocket mask with a one-way valve shall be used when providing mouthto-mouth resuscitation. 3. Disposable equipment should be used once and then disposed of properly. II. DECONTAMINATION AND LAUNDERING OF PROTECTIVE CLOTHING A. Transport all contaminated clothing in a leak-proof container, don t take home (personnel that are involved in the bagging, transporting and laundering of contaminated clothing should wear gloves).

III. B. Protective clothing and station uniforms shall be washed and dried according to the manufacturer s instruction. C. Boots and leather goods shall be brush-scrubbed with soap and hot water. NOTE: Always wash your hands and other skin surfaces immediately and thoroughly if contaminated with blood. DOCUMENTATION OF EXPOSURE AND REPORTING A. Documentation 1. Circumstances of exposure shall be recorded. 2. Record the activity in which the worker was involved at the time of the exposure. 3. The extent to which appropriate work practices and protective equipment were used. 4. A description of the source of exposure. B. Reporting 1. The employer shall have a supply of OSDH Communicable Disease Risk Exposure Report forms (OSDH Form 207) and L106 Forms. 2. Once a worker has become exposed, it is the responsibility of the employer to transport the worker to a medical facility and to complete the (OSDH 207) form. 3. If this exposure warrants a follow-up, the employer shall handle the routing to the paper work by hand carrying it. 4. Notification shall be made to the State Department of Health (OSDH) within 25 hours, preferably sooner. C. COUNSELING THE EXPOSED WORKER 1. The worker shall be counseled regarding the risk of infection and evaluated clinically as soon as possible after the exposure. NOTE: Emergency medical workers should not handle more than one patient unless absolutely necessary and then he should change gloves and other protection.

VEHICLE EXTRICATION SOP Vehicle extrication is a rescue situation which is performed by two separate teams working together. The First is the Extrication Team which is in charge of removing the vehicle from around the patient. The Second is the Medical Team which is in charge of the care of the patient. Extrication activities should always be done with the patient/victim in mind. If a particular extrication method will cause discomfort or further injury to the patient/victim, an alternative method should be used. 1. Mutual aid should be called prior to leaving the station (EMS, Law Enforcement, etc.) 2. Personnel shall be in full turnout gear to ensure their personal protection. 3. Personnel that are involved in patient care or who may come in contact with bodily fluids will also wear protective equipment to guard against exposure to blood and airborne pathogens as specified in the Bloodborne Pathogens SOP. 4. Position apparatus in a s safe area or create a safe area for rescuers. 5. The Incident Commander shall perform size-up and: a. determine any hazards for rescuers. b. conduct circle surveys (refer to Fire Service Training s Vehicle Extrication Manual) c. establish Safety Officers. 6. One 1 ½ inch hose line shall be pulled, charged and manned for the protection of the rescuers and the patient. 7. Stabilize the vehicle using chocks, jacks, etc. 8. If at all possible, unhook or cut the negative battery cable. 9. Follow manufacturer s recommendations and precautions during extrication in automobiles equipped with air bags. 10. Gain access to the patient to stabilize and keep them calm. a. Cover the patient while extrication is being performed. b. Immobilize the head. c. Provide medical treatment as necessary. 11. Remove the vehicle from around the patient. 12. Remove the patient a. Place on a long back board. b. Remove the patient from the vehicle. c. Finish packaging the patient for transport. 13. Check the trunk of the vehicle. a. For other victims. b. For propane tanks. c. For other hazardous materials 14. Conclude the incident and return units to service.

SOP S FOR VEHICLE FIRES Purpose: The purpose of this standard operating procedure is to maximize firefighter safety and efficiency while performing tactical operations at a vehicle fire. I. Establish Command II. Identify equipment and staffing needs III. Position apparatus: A. At an angle to protect firefighters from oncoming traffic B. Upwind and uphill C. Pointing away from the incident D. At least 50 feet from involved vehicle IV. Insure protective clothing (including SCBA) is worn by all personnel involved in fire attack or exposed to smoke conditions. V. Use 1 ½ inch hose (minimum size) to attack fire VI. Vehicle approach: A. Approach vehicle from upwind, if possible B. Approach vehicle from 45 o angle from the sides and front (see diagram) if vehicle is sitting upright or on its top C. Approach from the top side (roof side) if the vehicle is on its side VII. Fire Attack = Fire Streams or Use of Foam A. Open nozzle as you approach the vehicle using a straight stream gradually changing to a fog stream as you get close to the vehicle B. If fire is coming from the underside of the vehicle, bounce the fire stream from the road surface to get water onto the fire C. If rescue is involved, attack should be modified to protect the victims and rescuers during the rescue. D. First priority (other than rescue) is to cool danger areas of vehicle if fire is impinging the fuel tank, shock absorbers, drive shaft, bumpers (shock mounting) or engine compartment E. Safety considerations for extinguishment activities: 1. Fuel tanks extra tanks, leaks, explosions, LPG, CNG. Never remove or disable caps or venting devices during operations 2. Tires explosions (special precaution for trucks using split rims) 3. Batteries explosions and leaks 4. Possible hazardous cargo 5. Use caution when opening doors, hood and trunk; fire may flash outward F. If doors, hood or trunk cannot be opened with key, use the following alternatives: 1. Engine Compartment: Direct fire stream through the grill or wheel well 2. Passenger Compartment: Direct hose stream through a broken window (break out with forcible entry tool) 3. Trunk: Direct hose stream through the tail light assembly (after breaking with a forcible entry tool)

VIII. IX. G. After gaining access to the engine compartment or trunk, prop open with a forcible entry tool. Springs may be weakened and not perform properly After extinguishment, complete overhaul A. Identify cause. Preserve any evidence of arson, if suspected. B. Have vehicle removed from roadway (if applicable) as per local policies Return to Service

STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES FOR WATER SUPPLIES In order for a standard operating procedure for water supplies to be effective, the Incident Commander must determine the answers for the following questions: I. How much water is needed? A. The water needed can be figured using the Iowa Formula (Height X Width X Length divided by 100 = Gallons per Minute (gpm) needed. II. How much water is available? A. Can be determined by flow testing hydrants and then locating other sources such as ponds, creeks, lakes, etc. III. How is the water going to be moved? A. Pumpers utilizing city water systems or impounded bodies of water (draft) B. Tanker shuttle for areas where no water supply is available. The fire will continue to burn until the required rate of flow is established. All three of these questions need to be answered during the pre-fire planning, before a fire occurs.