“Operational Excellence is achieved through Tactical Discipline, Tactical Patience and Knowledge of our Buildingsonfire” Understanding the Compartment in various types of occupancies and variation of building types lends itself towards the identification and selection of appropriate tactics with corresponding capabilities in the form of sustainable water flow for the expected fire load package. Understanding the […]

A View from the Street The company and command officer’s ability to accurately and effectively read the building  establishes the not only the direction of an incident but also it’s potential outcome. What can you access from this street view of this building, it’s occupancy risks and structural and collapse profile? What type of strategies […]

  On October 17th, 1966, Manhattan Dispatch recorded an alarm from a resident at 7 East 22nd Street for smoke on the 4th floor of a brownstone. Box 0598 was transmitted at 2136 hours. Engine 14, 3 & 16, Ladders 3 & 12, Battalion 6 & Division 3 turn out. Upon arrival, they were confronted […]

The Art and Science of Firefighting is aligning in a manner that will ultimately forge enhancements in…

A fire in a three story multiple family apartment building injured four City of Chicago (IL) firefighters when an interior stairway collapsed during firefighting operations. The building was constructed in 1927 and consisted of 5456 square feet of space with 3-5 apartment units. Built of masonry wall construction with a wood floor joist system, the […]

    The Predictability of Building Performance must take into consideration that in the context of today’s fire ground, buildings and fire dynamics, small changes on initial compartment or structure conditions may often produce and result in large-scale or magnitude changes that affect the long term outcome of the incident.   We have assumed that […]

Remembering the 701 University Ave Fire: 1978 in Syracuse, New York

Eleven Minutes to Mayday: Lessons from 2008 Resonate Today

  Before Making Entry, while in the street; Has someone completed or assigned reconned a 360 of the building? Have you looked at the Building and its Profile? Made a Rapid Risk Assessment? Assessed the Building’s Anatomy? Considered the Compartment? Considered the Fire Dynamics? Assessed the Predictability of Performance? Scanned for Situational Awareness? Considered the […]

    Light Weight construction has given way to Engineered Structural Systems (ESS) which in today’s evolving fireground, have an even more extensive array of performance, operational and integrity issues that affect a building’s performance under fire conditions.To unequivocally state that nothing has changed in buildings, occupancies, fire flow delivery rates and demands for increased […]