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The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) recently released findings from a study pinpointing how firefighter crew sizes impact operations and safety in high-rise settings. Highlighted in the latest issue of NFPA Journal, the results shed light on a topic that has gained significant attention following budget cuts, staff shortages, and fire department closures.
“NFPA 1710 technical committee members have been
limited to anecdotal info [on high-rise fires] in the past,” says NFPA
regional director Russ Sanders, a technical expert for the NIST study. “I
can’t overemphasize how important it is that this scientific
information is now available to the committee, which will closely
review, consider, and implement these lessons learned into this
standard."
Check out this story and others from the In A Flash section of the May/June issue of Journal.
EMS week is a good time to recognize that almost half (45%) of fire departments in the United States provide EMS service and that two-thirds of fire department responses were medical aid calls.
As reported in NFPA’s Fire Loss in the U.S. during 2011, fire departments responded to 19,803,000 medical aid calls involving emergency medical services (EMS), medical assistance, and non-fire rescue these incidents accounted for 66% of fire department responses in 2011, up from 47% in 1980.
The U.S. Fire Department Profile report shows that in 2009-2011, the majority of U.S. fire departments provided at least some EMS services. Forty-four percent of the departments provided EMS only and 15% provided advanced life support (ALS) in addition. The percentage of departments providing any EMS, and more specifically both EMS and ALS, increased with the size of the population protected.
We are happy to announce that we are sponsoring the “Fire Service Safety & Health Quiz” Sweepstakes in conjunction with International Fire/EMS Safety and Health Week (which will be June 16-22, 2013). The theme of the week, and of the contest, will be “Saving Our Own… An Inside Job.”
“Raising awareness and education for firefighter health and safety is always a priority,” said Ken Willette, NFPA’s division manager of Public Fire Protection and a former fire chief. “This quiz is a quick and promising way to refresh fire service members’ knowledge and improve the safety of their teams.”
The quiz will be offered between May 20 and June 18 at www.nfpa.org/fireservicequiz. One sweepstakes entry will be given for a completed quiz through the Snapapp widget, with an additional entry if the quiz taker shares their result on Twitter.
On June 19, the 125 randomly selected winners will be announced. These winners will each receive a specially designed challenge coin commemorating this year’s International Fire/EMS Safety and Health Week. Read more details, and the full contest rules.
Nearly one month after an explosion and fire at a West, TX, fertilizer plant that killed 14 people, LDNews, the webiste of the Lebanon Daily News, is taking a closer look at the event, and in particular, if the town's volunteer fire crews were fully aware of the dangers they faced during their response efforts.
"When they saw 30-foot flames licking the sky inside a massive fertilizer plant, firefighters in this tiny Texas town rushed to evacuate nearby buildings and raced to spray water on tanks of chemicals, hoping to prevent a catastrophe.
They didn't know, and probably could not imagine, that the plant would soon explode into a deadly fireball and lay waste to much of the community. Instead, they were more concerned with preventing toxic gas from leaking out of the facility and drifting into nearby homes."
The LDNews report references Associated Press interviews with first-responders that suggeset the primary concern was a poisonous cloud of anhydrous ammonia. But the bigger threat, according to the report, was the huge supply of the common fertilzer ammonium nitrate, which can also serve as a cheap alternative to dynamite.
The report says Tommy Muska, Mayor of West, said he did not know how much the firefighters knew about the chemicals on the property. But, the report says, it's unclear whether simply knowing about the ammonium nitrate would have been enough.
"The National Fire Protection Association has codes on handling ammonium nitrate, but it does not advise how to fight such fires because circumstances vary, said Guy Colonna, the division manager of the industrial and chemical engineering group.
Related NFPA codes and standards
NFPA 400, Hazardous Material Code: This document applies to the storage, use, and handling of hazardous materials in all occupancies and facilities, including ammonium nitrate solids and liquids. Free access to NFPA 400.
NFPA 472, Competence of Responders to Hazardous Materials/Weapons of Mass Destruction Incidents. This document identifies the minimum levels of competence required by responders to emergencies involving hazardous materials/weapons of mass destruction. Free access to NFPA 472.
NFPA 1620, Pre-Incident Planning. This document provides criteria for evaluating the protection, construction, and operational features of specific occupancies to develop a pre-incident plan that should be used by responding personnel to manage fires and other emergencies in such occupancies using the available resources. Free access to NFPA 1620.
Also see
Storage of ammonium nitrate was the subject of a case study at a 2010 Fire Protection Research Foundaiton symposium.
This is the second in a series of posts about the 40th anniversary of America Burning and the related NFPA Journal article. The National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control was frustrated by how little was known about the causes and circumstances of fires. In the very first chapter, the Commission recommended “that a national fire data system be established to provide a continuing review and analysis of the entire fire problem. USFA’s National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS), the source of detailed information in most of NFPA’s statistical analyses, was the result.
The country also needed a better understanding of fire behavior and fire department productivity. This led to NIST’s Center for Fire Research and fire.gov – “Better firefighting through research.”
The Willis Tower, formerly known as the Sears Tower,is the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, with 4.5 million square feet (418,063 square meters) of floor space. Roughly 25,000 people pass through the building daily. That’s why building management teams up with the Chicago Fire Department to conduct an annual drill to test and fine-tune emergency-response procedures. NFPA Journalasked Michael Schroeder, director of business continuity and life safety for the company that manages the building, and Anthony VanBuskirk, a retired fire department deputy district chief, to recount their experiences with a recent drill. To see what it takes to make it happen, read the pair's article "Drill Team" in the latest issue of NFPA Journal.
Since I started working with the fire service in 1986, I have heard one refrain over and over: “They talked about that in America Burning.” On May 4, 1974, the National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control transmitted their findings to President Richard Nixon. In my article in ths month's NFPA Journal, I looked at the changes resulting from just a few of the 90 recommendations. The Commissioners felt that fire protection was primarily a local responsibility, but that local fire departments needed a federal agency that could represent their interests and help ensure that they received the latest and best information on how to do their work more safely and effectively. Their recommendations led to the formation of the US Fire Administration (USFA), and within USFA, the National Fire Academy (NFA). You can read reflections about the America Burning Anniversary posted by USFA Administrator Chief Ernest Mitchell.
What has it meant to the fire service to have the USFA and NFA? What do you think the Commissioners would recommend for these bodies today? Let’s take advantage of the web tools the Commission did not have to start a national conversation. NFPA is making some companion videos to start the ball rolling. Listen to David Lucht, the first Deputy Administrator of the USFA, describe the early years at USFA.
This is the first of a series of posts related to America Burning. Check back for more on this topic.
The Chemical Safety Board (CSB), the federal agency charged with investigating industrial accidents, recently released a video underscoring the damage from the ammonium nitrate fertilizer explosion in West, Texas, that killed 14 people and injured about 200 others. Narrated by a CSB investigator, the video illustrates the destruction of schools, residences, a nursing home, playgrounds, and other locations.
"The community damage we saw in West was the worst of any chemical accident in the CSB's history," says CSB Managing Director Daniel Horowitz in the video.
Watch the chilling video on CSB's Facebook page, and review NFPA's relevant resources:
NFPA 400, Hazardous Material Code This
document applies to the storage, use, and handling of hazardous
materials in all occupancies and facilities, including ammonium nitrate
solids and liquids. Access this document online for free.
NFPA 472, Competence of Responders to Hazardous Materials/Weapons of Mass Destruction Incidents This
document identifies the minimum levels of competence required by
responders to emergencies involving hazardous materials/weapons of mass
destruction. Access this document online for free.
NFPA 1620, Pre-Incident Planning This
document provides criteria for evaluating the protection, construction,
and operational features of specific occupancies to develop a
pre-incident plan that should be used by responding personnel to manage
fires and other emergencies in such occupancies using the available
resources. Access this document online for free.
On Sunday, June 9th you can spend a full day at Chicago's Quinn Fire Academy! This is truly an experience that you will remember if you aren't a trained firefighter.
I participated in similar training at the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy where you receive instruction, put on the HEAVY gear, and participate in actual evolutions. We did search and rescue in darkened buildings, used the breathing apparatus, used different extinguishers, pulled hoses up flights of stairs, went up in the ladders and more! At the end of the day I was tired, exhilarated and had a new appreciation for the fire service!
In Chicago, you'll learn how NFPA Standards are utilized in the design of personal protective equipment, self contained breathing apparatus, fire apparatus, and fire service training. After being briefed on how the Standard applies, you will receive basic safety instructions, don the equipment and participate in several firefighting evolutions, including:
exterior fire attack
advancing a hose line up a staircase
search and rescue
fire apparatus overview and use of fire extinguishers for flammable liquid fires
This is your opportunity to experience what firefighters face and how NFPA Standards make a dangerous job safer. Past participants have included: fire protection engineers, architects, plan reviewers, building/code enforcement officials, facility owners/managers, fire protection systems designers, life safety consultants/special experts, and project managers.
Class size is strictly limited due to hands-on instruction. The day’s activities comprise 6 firefighting skill evolutions and observing live fire demonstrations. You'll be offered firefighter protective clothing, consisting of fire coat and pants, boots, helmet, protective hood and gloves and it is recommended you wear comfortable work clothing such as jeans and work shirt. You'll be allowed to participate in the evolutions to your level of comfort and safety and can observe any evolution at any time, as opposed to direct participation. This is a rain or shine event. Departure from McCormick Place at 8:15 am and return at 3:45 pm. Get more registration info.
Inherent in this event is a level of risk and physical exertion. Participants will be required to be properly attired in work clothing, wear firefighter protective gear as offered by the Chicago Fire Department, and sign a waiver holding NFPA harmless from any loss, cost, damage or injury. NFPA may deny participation in appropriate circumstances.
There are still a handful of slots open for Sunday, June 9th. Firefighter for a Day: NFPA Standards at Work. Experience it with NFPA Technical Staff and City of Chicago Fire Department Staff at Chicago's Quinn Fire Academy!
National EMS Week
kicks off on Sunday, May 19. This week honors the men and women who deliver
pre-hospital 9-1-1 emergency medical care throughout the United States. The
role of pre-hospital care falls to these fire department-based emergency
responders, among them those who serve the dual positions of firefighter/EMTs and
firefighter/paramedics.
The Fire
Service-Based EMS Advocates coalition- Congressional Fire Services
Institute, International Association of Fire Chiefs, International Association
of Fire Fighters, National Fire Protection Association, and National Volunteer
Fire Council- recognizes the week as a time to pause and say “thank you” to the
entire EMS Community, our nation’s ‘all hazards’ response professionals.
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