Not just what and how, but why!
Two recent events in Baltimore, Maryland and Gary, Indiana point to the criticality of recognizing key fire behavior indicators and understanding practical fire dynamics. Five Firefighters Injured in Baltimore Early on the morning of Friday, January 15, 2010, the Baltimore City Fire Department was dispatched to a residential fire Southeast Baltimore. First arriving companies observed … Read more
As we start the New Year it is a good time to reaffirm our commitment to mastering our craft. Developing and maintaining proficiency in reading the Fire using the B-SAHF (Building, Smoke, Air Track, Heat, and Flame) organizing scheme for fire behavior indicators, requires practice. This post provides an opportunity to exercise your skills using … Read more
The first two posts in this series, Effective and Efficient Fire Streams, and Effective and Efficient Fire Streams: Part 2, discussed theoretical cooling capacity, fire stream efficiency, flow rate, nozzle design characteristics and methods of use. This post drills down with a look at the relationships between the pump, hose, and nozzle in developing effective … Read more
The ability to read the fire and predict likely fire behavior is a critical skill for both firefighters and fire officers. Previous posts have examined how to use the B-SAHF scheme to recognize critical fire behavior indicators and identify the stage of fire development, burning regime, and potential for extreme fire behavior such as flashover … Read more
The first post in this series, Effective and Efficient Fire Streams, discussed theoretical cooling capacity, fire stream efficiency, and flow rate. This post extends the discussion, by examining how nozzle design characteristics and methods of use influence efficiency. Think! I do not ask that anyone believe anything that I say (or write in this blog) … Read more
The previous posts in this series, examined the importance of proficiency in use of the firefightersÂ’ primary weapon in offensive firefighting operations, and outlined several drills that can be used to develop proficiency in basic nozzle operation and hose handling. My Nozzle Basic Nozzle Techniques & Hose Handling Nozzle Techniques & Hose Handling: Part 2 … Read more
As discussed in prior Reading the Fire posts and the ongoing series examining fire behavior indicators (FBI), using the B-SAHF (Building, Smoke, Air Track, Heat, and Flame) organizing scheme, developing proficiency requires practice. This post provides an opportunity to exercise your skills using three video segments shot during an apartment fire. Apartment Fire At 2235 … Read more
It is often stated and commonly believed that it takes gpm to overcome Btu. While I suspect that firefighters understand the underlying intent of this statement, it is actually incorrect as it is comparing apples and oranges. Flow rate is expressed in terms of volume and time (gal/m or l/m). However, Btu (or Joules) is … Read more
The previous posts in this series, examined the importance of proficiency in use of the firefighters’ primary weapon in offensive firefighting operations, and outlined several drills that can be used to develop proficiency in basic nozzle operation and hose handling. My Nozzle Basic Nozzle Techniques & Hose Handling Nozzle Techniques & Hose Handling: Part 2 … Read more
Understanding how to develop fire streams has been critical since firefighters began to use hose and nozzles (Figure 1) to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of firefighting operations. Figure 1. In the Beginning! When selecting handline nozzles, firefighters and fire officers generally consider four nozzle characteristics: 1) type of nozzle (combination or solid stream/smoothbore), 2) … Read more