In the early morning hours of Dec. 28, Hamilton, Ohio firefighters were battling a blaze in a single-family dwelling. The first arriving units had received information that there were possibly people inside. This information sets events into motion, namely the most dangerous mode that firefighters work under, the rescue mode. In this situation, firefighters are working without a rapid intervention team in place and may even be working without the protection of a hoseline. The end result of the Ohio incident is that there was no one home and a 28-year old firefighter lost his life, when the floor collapsed, sending him to the basement.
Firefighters are taught to look for indicators of people in a burning building, whether it be cars in the driveway, toys in the yard or any number of things that might say that people are home. One of the biggest game changers is when people report that there is definitely someone inside. This, under no circumstance, should be a person’s default, if they do not know. Saying, “I think so” or “maybe” is the same as saying yes, there is someone inside. Understand, firefighters will do a primary and secondary search of every dwelling, but more safety measures are put into place, when a verbal all clear is given by owners/occupants. The reason for these searches is that people have been located; even though the building occupant states that everyone is out. The other reason that firefighters do a search of every dwelling is because that is standard operating procedure.
Going back to the Ohio incident, this fire had a head start on firefighters. Firefighters arrived to heavy smoke showing from three sides of the building. Unless the fire was set and the building was sabotaged to hurt firefighters, this fire had been burning for a good while, before firefighters arrived. My reason for saying this is due to the floor being weakened to the point of collapse. I am not going to disregard the fact that lightweight construction collapses quicker, but this looked like an older home.
Accurate information is vital to first-arriving firefighters. The strategy and tactics that are initially employed have everything to do with the information received, either while en route or on arrival. If you know that someone is inside of the home, then state that. If you do not know, state that as well. Firefighters will risk a lot to save a life, even their own lives. Firefighters should never die for a building. Bad or inaccurate information has cost many firefighters their lives. Firefighters are taught to look at conditions in their risk assessment. If there is no possibility that a person could be alive, due to conditions such as extreme heat, appropriate precautions are taken to ensure firefighter safety. These are difficult decisions to make, but firefighters are trained to make these critical decisions, with the lives of citizens and firefighters in mind.
It is stressful to have to call 9-1-1. I have been on all three sides of the equation. I served as a dispatcher in 1980 and again in 1985, taking calls for service. I served as a firefighter from 1976-2010, responding to calls for service. I have also had to call 9-1-1, to report emergency situations. Let me say again, it is stressful to have to call 9-1-1. I will have to say that the attitude of the message taker makes all of the difference in a person’s ability to share as much information as possible. There have been times when I have had to call 9-1-1, only to be treated like an idiot. The message taker has a job to do, and needs to ask questions that may not seem appropriate at the moment, but the information helps them to determine how to properly code the call, to ensure that the proper units are sent. For you, the caller, paint the best picture possible of what you see and what is factual. Firefighters, medics and police officers lives depend upon it.
