Fire and emergency services safety officer chapter 6. Emergency Response: Preincident Planning

• Operational risk management applies to both training and emergency incidents
• Emergency incidents are evaluated based on the incident facts, whether common or infrequent
• Preincident planning identifies typical or predictable hazards and risks in daily operations.

Preincident Planning

• Preparing to manage an incident at a location or incident type before it occurs
• Goal is to provide responders with location information to make strategic and tactical decisions
• Location details promote safer and more efficient operations for responders

Preincident Plan

• A document developed during preincident planning
• Contains the operational plan or procedures for handling emergency situations at a specific location
• Includes potential risks, hazards, site features, access points, water supply, and fire suppression features

Responder Preparedness

• Responders must be prepared for the unexpected through:
  • Personal protective equipment
  • Department standard operating procedures
  • Following chain of command orders
• Operational risk management includes coordinating incident management
• Incident Management System (IMS) offers a consistent framework with structure, safety, accountability, and communication
• The HSO develops an operational risk management plan within the department's SOP/G manual
• The plan and SOP/Gs address preincident planning and emergency incident management strategy

Preincident Survey

• Assessment of a facility before an emergency to prepare for response
• Provides basic information for preincident plan development
• Should be performed periodically depending on local requirements

Preincident Survey Information

• Site access
• Structure
  • Construction type
  • Occupancy type
  • Changes in occupancy
  • Fire protection systems
  • Content fuel load
  • Unique hazards
• Available water supply
• Utilities and supplemental power/water
• Resource needs
• Neighboring risks

Survey Updates

• Conducted annually or biannually
• Should be done when there is a change of occupancy type
• Should be done when renovations or alterations happen
• The HSO should facilitate communication between fire prevention staff and operational personnel with updated information learned during inspections
• Construction sites should also be surveyed
• Construction sites are vulnerable to fires

NFPA 1620

• Standard for Pre-Incident Planning
• Provides details on information and considerations for preincident plans
• HSO assists personnel in understanding safety and health considerations at a location and how they could impact operations

Preincident Survey Features

• Life safety concerns for firefighters and occupants
• Building construction type and materials
• Building services (utility shut-offs, high-voltage equipment, etc.)
• Building access and egress, including lock box location
• Building age, area, and height
• Contents, to estimate fire load
• Building use, to determine life safety and fire load
• Exposures
• Collapse zone
• Location and capacity of available water supply
• Location of fire control and protection system connections
• Hazardous materials or processes, including flammable liquids and gases
• Location of Safety Data Sheets (SDS)

GIS

• Geographic Information Systems
• Relates physical features to a database for mapping and analysis
• Software captures, stores, analyzes, manages, and presents data linked to a location

Additional Survey Information

• Occupancy load at all hours
• Contact information for owner/occupant
• Estimated water quantity to extinguish a fire (fire flow)
• Emergency evacuation plan
• Unique features specific to the location

Preincident Plan Development

• Completed on a standard department form
• Can utilize software to incorporate architectural drawings and floor plans
• Digitized plans are accessible on the organization’s computer system, mobile data terminals, and computer aided dispatch system
• Software can integrate Geographic Information System (GIS) data with the preincident plan, such as road closures and hydrant availability
• Improves responder decision-making, operational efficiency, and effectiveness
• Shared with neighboring departments for mutual aid assignments

Assisting with District Surveys

• A district survey is a dynamic evaluation of a geographically assigned area to identify potential hazards related to safety and health
• Responsibility may lie with fire prevention bureau or company level
• District surveys are a vital tool to a successful risk management plan

HSO Role in District Surveys

• Ensuring personnel are informed of what to look for and how to report potential hazards
• Assisting field personnel in developing control measures
• Forecasting potential hazards and risks
• Providing options for mitigating hazards
• Site visits provide first-hand details and interaction with site personnel

Environmental Considerations

• Address the environmental impact of any incident
• Contain the Foam, contaminated water, or hazardous materials and remove them from the site
• Preincident planning in coordination with response plans reduces potential damage
• Conveying environmental concerns shows professionalism

Plan Review and Revision

• Plans must be reviewed and revised periodically
• Adjustments should be based on site changes or department updates
• Can be based on subsequent inspections or postincident analysis reports

Providing Information to Personnel

• The HSO communicates safety and health risk information
• The HSO can research occurrences at a specified location for previous responses and any associated accidents, injuries, fatalities, illnesses, or exposures
• Seek out historical knowledge from within the department’s membership
• Providing department experience at a location allows personnel to gain a perspective of the potential risks and hazards

Hazards Affecting Operations

• A hazard is a condition, substance, activity, or device that can directly cause harm
• The preincident plan should identify hazards and address appropriate control measures

Hazards During Response

• Traffic hazards
  • Roads: narrow lanes, sharp turns, blind intersections, medians, one-way roads, speed humps, and poorly maintained road surfaces
  • Bridges: height and weight restrictions, single-lane alternating traffic patterns, narrow lanes, and reduced visibility
  • Construction zones: changing conditions may catch responders unaware
  • Traffic: congestion, distracted drivers, bicyclists, pedestrians
• Violence
  • Law enforcement may need to secure the area
  • Communication with law enforcement is essential to coordinating activities
  • Civil Disorder: Responders may be targeted
  • Weapons: Knives, firearms etc are a hazard to responders
  • Explosives: additional devices may intentionally target responders
  • CBRN event: Chemical, biological, radiological, and/or nuclear substances

Weather

• Weather is addressed in an SOP/G, not individual preincident plans-
• Impacts operations and places personnel at risk
• Weather events include:
  • Thunderstorms: lightning, heavy rain, wind, and flash floods
  • Winter: snow, blizzards, icy conditions, fog, wind, and impassable roads
  • Summer: extreme heat
  • Significant natural events: tornadoes, hurricanes, flooding, tsunamis, earthquakes, and volcanoes

Locations Presenting Safety and Health Risks

• Local SOP/Gs should include a process to determine which occupancies to survey and how often
• Potential fire and life safety hazards should also be taken into consideration
• These sites are referred to as target hazards
• Target hazards contain life safety concerns for firefighters and occupants, hazardous processes, government buildings, prominent structures, and/or high content value

Examples Of Target Hazards

• Life Safety Concerns:
  • Schools, colleges, universities
  • Auditoriums, theaters, restaurants
  • Places of worship
  • Hospitals, nursing homes, daycare centers
  • Multifamily dwellings, hotels, motels, dormitories
  • Institutions, jails, prisons
• Hazardous Processes/Storage:
  • Spray paint operations
  • Metal plating
  • Chemical plants
  • Automobile fueling stations
  • Compressed gas storage
  • Paint storage warehouses
• High Contents/Structure Value:
  • Mercantile occupancies
  • High-rise structures
  • Office buildings
  • Warehouses

Site Safety Plans

• Businesses create site safety plans to identify potential hazards and risks
• Site safety plans also identify control measures implemented to mitigate them
• Some locations require site safety plans per OSHA regulations
• Fire and emergency service organizations should be aware of any location that has an OSHA-required site safety plan
• Site Safety Plans should illustrate site features that might be a hindrance to emergency responses at the site

Site Safety Plan Content

• Plan should contain the following at a minimum:
  • Access and egress points
  • Building Construction and Characteristics
  • Limited or no water supply (alternative sources should be identified)
  • Fuel type and load (critical for strategy)
  • Locations with flammable and/or combustible materials can produce significant fire and/or explosive hazards
  • Security features

Business and Industry Relationships

• Fire and emergency service organizations should build cooperative relationships with local businesses and industries
• Point of Contact: The fire chief, fire marshal, or a designated official, such as the HSO, should serve as the point of contact for working with local businesses and industries
• Through collaboration, preincident surveys and preincident plans can improve safety and coordination efforts when an emergency occurs
• ICS Form 208 provides a standard way to document a site safety and health plan

Recommending Control Measures

• Effective control measures (risk reduction) are the most common method used for risk management
• Control measures reduce occurrence likelihood or severity
• Some control measures are engineered into buildings, such as deluge sprinkler systems or smoke control devices
• Control measures should be coordinated with the fire marshal’s office and/or other code setting and enforcement organizations
• Preincident plans and district surveys can determine control measures

Holistic Approach

• The district survey and/or preincident plan will identify needed control measures based on the hierarchy of controls concept that may include:
  • Eliminating hazards at the source (such as having utilities secured)
  • Reducing or substituting processes to mitigate the hazard (such as fire suppression techniques based on location of fuels)
  • Creating a separation with engineering controls between the responder and the hazard (such as new apparatus designs with enclosed cabs and hearing protection)
  • Implementing management or administrative controls that ensure resource needs are identified and addressed in SOP/Gs for specific target hazards
  • Identifying PPE needs based on known location hazards (such as hazardous material specific PPE)

Operational Risk Management Plan

• The HSO is responsible for developing an operational risk management plan that addresses the risks and hazards in the operational setting
• Each incident and training exercise presents its own hazards, placing responders’ health and safety at risk
• Leading causes of fatalities during emergency operations are trauma, sudden cardiac arrest, and vehicle accidents

Elements Of An Incident Management Framework

• Must be applied to all incident types
• NFPA® 1500, Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program, details emergency scene operations requirements
• The HSO should refer to NFPA® 1500, Chapter 8, when developing the operational risk management plan
• NFPA® 1521 emphasizes clear incident management, command structure, and safety considerations

Operational Risk Management Plan Components

• Incident Management System
• Communications
• Risk Management During Emergency Operations
• Personnel Accountability During Emergency Operations
• Members Operating at Emergency Incidents
• Established Hazard Control Zones
• Traffic Incident Procedures
• Rapid Intervention Crews (RIC)
• Rehabilitation During Emergency Operations
• Violent Scenes, Civil Unrest, and Terrorism
• Postincident Analysis

Incident Management System (IMS)

• Every fire and emergency service organization must implement a locally adopted incident command system (ICS) based on the National Incident Management System NIMS-ICS
• The ICS should be used, in varying forms, on all incidents
• ICS model adopted by many jurisdictions in North America is based on NFPA® 1561, Standard on Emergency Services Incident Management System
• HSO must ensure that the incident management system complies with NFPA standards and also includes the following

IMS Components

• Common terminology
• Modular organization
• Integrated communications
• Unified command structure
• Consolidated action plans
• Manageable span of control
• Predesignated incident facilities
• Comprehensive resource management

Establishment of Incident Safety Officer

• The HSO should ensure that organizational SOP/Gs address the establishment, duties, and authority of the ISO
• During an incident, the incident commander (IC) should assign the function to an individual designated as the ISO
• May require the assignment of assistants
• The role of the ISO must be defined in the fire and emergency service department’s SOP/Gs
• NFPA® 1521 outlines the role of the ISO and is a good starting point for developing the SOP/G

ISO SOP/G Situations

• Commercial and residential fires
• Multiple-alarm fires
• Firefighter injury or firefighter transported for treatment
• Hazardous materials incident
• Technical rescue incident
• Incident command request

Tactical-Level Management

• Complex emergency situations often exceed one officer's capability for effective management
• Divisions or Groups can be established to direct operations
• Generally, the best span of control consists of three to seven subordinates, with five being the preferred number
• Tactical-level supervisors direct operations and oversee grouped resources
• Goals of tactical groups should execute the incident action plan strategy

Tactical Components

• Divisions are the organizational level that have responsibility for operations
  • The Division level is organized into Single Resources, Task Forces, Strike Teams, or Branches
• Groups are an organizational level responsible for the specific functional assignment
  • Examples: Salvage Group, Search Group, Rescue Group, Haz-Mat Group, and Medical Group

Incident Assessment

• Major incidents will initially have more tasks than available resources
• Fire personnel should assess incidents for their cause, needs, size, and complexity when establishing the incident command structure DO NOT postpone the establishment of ICS or take action before needed resources are available.

FEMA Incident Complexity

• Type I: Requires national resources and a written IAP, 500+ personnel
• Type II: Requires resources from outside the local jurisdiction and multiple operational periods, 200- personnel
• Type III: Exceeds jurisdiction capabilities and may have multiple operational periods, A written IAP may be required
• Type IV: May have several resources, A written IAP may not be required
• Type V: Managed with one or two single resources, A written IAP not required

Staff Organization Positions

• Command, Command Staff, and the General Staff positions
• The IC has responsibility of all ICS structure positions until duties are delegated
• Command Staff reports directly to the IC by providing management support in functions that are not directly involved with operational tasks
• The Command Staff has positions including: Safety Officer, Liaison Officer, and Public Information Officer

General Staff

• Consists of Planning, Operations, Logistics, and Finance/Administration
  • Planning: collect, evaluate, disseminate, and use information to develop the incident
  • Operations: Staff assigned specific functions, Operations may be divided into Divisions or Groups, Branches may be organized if needed
  • Logistics: Provide the facilities, services, and materials necessary to support the incident
  • Finance/Administration: Track and document all costs and financial aspects of the incident

Safety Enforcement

• The IC has responsibility for the safety and health of all members operating at an emergency incident
• The ICS system has the potential for multiple layers of safety enforcement.
• Safety awareness and compliance should begin at the personal level
• Company officers provide the next level of safety enforcement
• Division and Group supervisors further provide safety enforcement
• ISO is the scene safety enforcement supervisor