Firefighting Principles and Rescue Priorities

Firefighting Principles

• Prioritizing human life above all else is the foundational principle of firefighting.
• This includes firefighters' safety.
• Ensuring firefighter safety is crucial because a deceased or injured firefighter cannot assist with rescuing building occupants.
• This principle can be overlooked, leading to actions that unintentionally endanger occupants or firefighters.
• Engine and ladder company operations and fire safety in specific occupancies further elaborate on these principles.

Rescue Takes Priority

• Rescue operations take precedence when insufficient personnel exist to manage both rescue and fire suppression simultaneously.
• A scenario involves a three-person engine crew arriving at a burning two-story house, encountering an adult female and her child trapped at a second-floor window, with the female seemingly unconscious from smoke inhalation.
• The situation emphasizes the necessity of prioritizing rescue, requiring all three crew members to conduct the rescue using a ladder from the pumper truck, despite the presence of known life hazards.