Blowin’ In the Wind, Part 2

How to perform an exterior survey of the fire building

In the last edition of the FireRescue e-newsletter, I discussed some concerns about wind-driven fires. To continue that article, I must start out by saying that I’m just passing on information that I obtained through the dedication and hard work of others. FDNY Chiefs Gerry Tracy and George Healy and Lieutenant John Cirello researched wind-driven fires and were instrumental in gathering information and developing new tactics that will undoubtedly save firefighters’ lives. They also worked diligently with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), doing actual testing in high-rise buildings and replicating the actual conditions at wind-driven fires. The bottom line: They passed this information to me, so I’m passing it on to you. Hopefully, we’ll all be better for it.

The Exterior Survey
When dealing with wind-driven fires, it’s very important to do an exterior survey of the building so you can develop strategy and tactics, which may be dictated by surveys in conjunction with radio reports. There are certain things the member performing the exterior survey should look for, such as the location of the fire, what floor it’s on and fire or smoke being visible only from the side or rear of the building. Other things to look for include:

• Is fire extending to the floor above?
• Is there a life hazard with persons located at windows needing to be rescued or removed? Will our ladders at the scene reach them, or do we need to special call an additional aerial or tower ladder?
• Is there access for these types of apparatus, and what will be the time frame?
• Will a roof rope rescue be required, and is the proper amount of manpower on the scene to perform this operation?

These are just a few points to consider, and the answers will be different due to manning standards and equipment in different areas of the country.

Fire & Smoke
Fire and smoke conditions at these fires may give you some tell-tale signs of the interior conditions. For example, if fire is venting out a window, it’s pretty obvious that the window has failed, and the fire is venting to the outside. If you have visible fire inside the apartment and the windows have failed, but no fire is venting out through the windows, this might indicate an advanced fire where the wind is keeping the fire from venting to the outside.

Fire that’s venting out of a window and then stops, but is still visible inside the apartment would indicate another type of condition, as the fire apartment is over-pressurized from the wind. The wind will push the fire in and then forcefully vent out the window, indicating an extreme condition. This may also indicate that the wind is gusting and then subsiding, allowing the fire to vent out and then go back into the windows. Officers and firefighters who’ve reported this condition at other fires also reported that the wind conditions affected operations.

If smoke is pushing from around the window frame, but the window is intact, this indicates that there’s a fire in the apartment, but the windows haven’t failed. Once the windows fail, if the wind is blowing directly into the window, you’ll have a wind-driven fire.

Survey Recommendations
Any member conducting this survey or observing these conditions must transmit this information immediately to the incident commander and any members operating at the scene. Members receiving this report should acknowledge it.

Other recommendations for the member doing the survey are as follows:

1. It may be difficult to identify which apartment is on fire, especially in buildings more than 15 stories high. To solve this problem, count the floors from the roof down. As an example, a firefighter identifying fire eight floors from the roof could give the information as, “I can see fire inside a failed window in an apartment eight floors down from the roof.” Members inside can do the simple math by looking at the elevator floor panel and determining which floor the fire is on. Other ways to determine which apartment is on fire from the exterior is to see if there are any identifying letters beneath the first-floor windows that may indicate the vertical designation of the apartments.
2. If heat conditions have caused a thermal pane window to fail, you have an advanced fire condition. Tests conducted by the FDNY and NIST indicate that thermal pane windows fail when interior temperatures reach 900 degrees.

A Final Note
Do not underestimate the importance of the information gathered and transmitted by the member performing an exterior survey. Having an experienced member who is aware of the dangers involved in wind-driven fires and can identify them may save the life of a brother or sister firefighter.

As always, discuss and train on wind-driven fire operations during drill periods, and integrate the information into your standard operation procedures.

Chief Fred LaFemina is a 24-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY), presently chief of Rescue Operations. He has been with Special Operations for more than 20 years and is the task force leader for New York’s Task Force 1 Urban Search and Rescue team. He is also the operations chief on the USAR IST White Team. LaFemina has written many articles on fire operations and technical rescue and lectures throughout the country.