Multi-Family Dwelling (MFD) Fires

Introduction to Multi-Family Dwelling (MFD) Fires

• MFDs are structures meant for occupancy by more than a single family
• These dwellings can be prone to significant loss of life
• Occupant numbers often exceed official design or accounting.
• MFDs include duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, condominiums, and townhomes
• Some MFDs are subdivided/remodeled without adhering to building codes
• Larger MFDs can be old/new law tenements, row frames/row houses, low-density housing, and center hall and garden-style apartments
• Brownstones are specific to regions like New York or New Jersey
• Generic MFDs are found in many places throughout North America
• MFD Construction includes balloon frame, conventional platform, legacy, or lightweight
• Pre-planning and drilling in MFDs are vital to save lives
• Garden apartments have doors to each unit opening to the outside, exterior open walkways, and stairwells serving one building side
• Multi-story garden apartments typically have exterior open walkways and stairwells
• Some have exterior partially enclosed hallways leading to upper units

Apartment Complexes

• Center hall apartments feature doors to each unit opening to an interior enclosed hallway
• Stairwells to upper floors are enclosed/separated, feeding each floor
• Apartment complexes differ from stand-alone apartment buildings
• Apartment complexes feature MFD buildings located closely under one management company
• Apartment complexes feature multiple access points/passageways for parking and walking
• Apartment complexes are complex by their very nature
• Confusion and lack of pre-planning can bottleneck companies and delay access to the fire

Access Challenges

• Facilities are often gated, lacking sufficient preplanning, and hydrants may be located deep in the complex
• Fire lanes, parked cars, awnings, dumpsters, and narrow passages create vehicular access challenges
• Fire companies commonly access wrong driveways, and hose stretches can be long and complicated
• Apartment complexes can be center hall, garden style, or a combination, reinforcing the need for pre-planning

Hotels and Motels

• Hotels and motels provide temporary living accommodations, and sometimes, long-term residents
• Hotels are center hall structures with multiple stories, enclosed stairwells, and interior hallways giving access to guest rooms
• Atrium-style hotels may have an open center and doors to individual rooms opening into the inner atrium space
• Most atrium hotels are mid- to high-rise
• Motels are garden-style buildings with doors opening to the outside, often adjacent to parking, with fewer amenities than larger hotels
• Motels are designed for temporary overnight stays for travelers
• The term "motel" originated with the Motel Inn of San Luis Obispo, originally called the Milestone Mo-Tel
• Arthur Heineman constructed the Motel Inn in 1925
• Heineman abbreviated "motor hotel" to "mo-tel," unable to fit "Milestone Motor Hotel" on the rooftop
• Center hall construction is the most lethal from a firefighting and command perspective
• Occupants utilize secondary and tertiary enclosed exit routes (enclosed halls and stairwells) to escape

Fire Spread and Vital Actions

• Fires commonly extend beyond the original unit, which heavy smoke and fire can fill exit routes
• Vital actions include accessing the fire to contain, opening hallways, and maintaining egress for occupants

Common Pitfalls

• Lack of pre-planning/training
• Improper size-up / access problems
• Inadequate victim profile/underestimating the potential
• Lack of tactical supervision (divisions/groups)
• Use of two-out crews with confirmed victim profile
• Difficulty in containing attic fires, and lack of sufficient medical capabilities

Case Study: Apartment Fire with Three Rescues

• Fire dispatch transmitted a commercial structure fire assignment with trapped people
• The fire occurred at 3530 W. Waco Drive that required five engines, two ladders, two battalion chiefs, a private ambulance, and an EMS supervisor
• The first-due battalion chief was on the far-west side of the city
• The self-assigned headquarters chief arrived with the first-due company, Engine 6
• The dispatch confirmed two occupants trapped in apartment C
• Engine 6 and the chief arrived simultaneously in under three minutes
• There was heavy smoke showing from the first floor of a two-story garden-style apartment building
• The fire apartment living room window had self-vented, and now, flames were visible
• The chief assumed Waco Drive Command with a "confirmed victim profile" and called for an offensive strategy.
• Engine 6 was assigned to initiate fire attack at the task level, deploying a 1¾" hoseline
• This complex constructed in 1975, had eight units per building, four units with accessible exterior doors and an interior stairwell to second-floor units
• An occupant from the fire apartment left the door open upon exiting
• Smoke and heat blocked the exit of two upstairs apartments

Water Supply for Rescue Situations

• Engine 5 positioned to give tank water to Engine 6, which allowed all three members to search second-floor apartments
• Engines 8 and 9 arrived shortly after and were assigned to search
• The Engine 8 captain was assigned as the rescue group supervisor
• Battalion 1 arrived and was assigned to incident safety officer
• The chief requested a CAN report from the lieutenant of Engine 6 about their progress
• The Engine 6 lieutenant had reported good knockdown headway
• The Engine 6 lieutenant was instructed to remain at the task level pending the arrival of more resources
• Engine 4 initially went to forward staging
• Three victims had been removed by the rescue group, requiring EMS
• Fire dispatch requested two more ambulances when there was no communication with private ambulance personnel yet
• Engine 4 started patient care, Battalion 2 arrived, medical group supervisor assignment with support from Engine 4
• The personnel goal was to commence treatment and ascertain the apartments where the victims were from
• Initial confusion existed because three victims were located
• It was critical to clear the confusion from which apartments the victims occupied
• Two victims came from apartment C
• The previously unknown victim was located in apartment D across the smoke-choked stairwell
• Private ambulance personnel were assigned to the medical group to assist

Subsequent Support and Fire Containment

• Truck 2 arrived to assist the rescue group with 2nd-floor searches
• Truck 1 teamed with Engine 6 and Truck 1 lieutenant as the fire attack group supervisor
• The fire remained at one alarm, no supply line needed
• All victims had minor injuries
• Engine 6 contained the fire quickly, the incident commander committed later-arriving resources to the rescue

Water, Rescue, and Medical Operations

• Engine 5 made tank water available, instead of laying a supply line from a hydrant
• Simultaneous fire attack and primary search operations began immediately
• The third-arriving engine can lay the supply line, having a medical group is important for positive outcomes
• This validated data from the Firefighter Rescue Survey
• Apartment fires with a trapped victim often have three victims
• The incident command system utilized fire attack, rescue, and medical functional groups
• This incident of 11+ resources resulted with a manageable 4:1 span of control

Sizing Up

• MFDs are not always easy to size this up, especially apartment complexes
• Civilian rescues happen at night, challenges exist seeing smoke from deep inside apartments
• Units adjacent to the involved unit made 9-1-1 calls from entirely different street addresses
• Apartment complexes are found on corners of urban blocks, having two different street names and associated addresses
• Streets inside the complex have their own names different from the main street names

Issues with Water Supply

• Engine companies race to be first in, first two companies go into the complex without laying a supply line
• Limited access creates problems
• The lead truck dives into the complex, significantly delaying establishing a patent water supply.
• Initial companies initiate a wet lay, preventing subsequent companies from accessing the complex
• The closest hydrant to the fire can be accessed from a different entry point than the initial engine for attack
• Failure to bring multiple supply lines to support multiple apparatus limits additional handlines for exposures or extension
• Changes in strategy and a lack of planning for positioning apparatus for relay operations and larger volume flows hamper capabilities

Fire in Apartments Under Construction

• Fire caught in a trash chute spread quickly
• No sprinklers were mandated during construction
• There was no fire-stopping or drywall
• Unlimited fuel existed, and there was an unimpeded path for fire travel
• Attempts did little to slow down the fire's progress
• Fire travelled faster than strategic communication and implementation
• The fire was raining embers

Rapid Fire Spread

• Fire was seemingly creating its own weather with a wind passing through the command post
• Radiant heat made streets between the involved buildings and exposures on the other side of the street impassable
• Telephone poles and power lines were burning/dropping
• Windows were failing in the occupied exposures, the fire was entering the threatened exposures

Adapting to the Fire

• Fire departments were very successful in the forward laying process
• Departments must train for the event
• They must provide a plan to tackle said fire
• The fire demands incredible amounts of water
• It is vital that supervisors are willing to dedicate water to suppress the flames
• It is important to assess, plan, and execute a water supply system in coordination with the IC

Victim Profile and Potential Rescue Situations

• Must recognize that MFDs have a much greater life hazard than a house fire
• Total victim count in MFD fires will exceed that of a single-family home three-fold
• Duplexes and apartments will all have the potential for massive loss
• Depending on resources, consider additional alarms before arriving to remain ahead of power curve
• Confirmed fire, visible smoke, and multiple callers all trigger a red flag

Tactical Supervision

• Establishing divisions and groups early when encountering MFDs is key
• First arriving company officer is often not the best choice
• Second chief assumes the hot division
• Incident results in too many companies who are unorganized
• Command has no control and cannot develop divisions
• Chief’s task is simply too great

Two-Out Crews

• Departments wait for the proper back-up
• This delay is unwarranted since apartments should be considered occupied 24 hours per day
• The key is to get ahead, then provide solid supervisors to cut off lateral spread
• The astute IC plans on vertical extension on most every fire, especially those

Vertical Extension

• Fires in MFDs will travel vertically
• Vertical confinement changes to lateral once the attic is reached
• Individual crews will not seek anchor points, without tactical supervision

Roof Involvement

• Roof division supervisors must understand the leverage available from certain vantage points

Medical Resources Required

• Unlike the typical medical call, fire victims often require much more care, thus making tandem transport unfeasible
• A large influx of injured require staging units for later medical implementation
• Set up a medical group supervisor who can coordinate the treatment and transport of fire victims

Communications

Unit Descriptions

• Confusion exists regarding unit labels, which are important to define
• A unit is a separate living space in the same building that is joined under the same roof
• A building is a separate occupancy structure that is not connected to other structures
• The originating unit is the alpha
• Adjacent sides are assigned the Bravo and Delta names

Template Overview

• A singular division, often held by one officer, will allow for more control and focus of each incident

Fourplex Fires

• A fire in a fourplex could necessitate multiple divisions to coordinate activities effectively
• Having multiple vantage points can result in better control when there is a large fire with lots of smoke

Size-Up

• Proper templates for smaller dwellings will work effectively for townhouses as well
• Garden apartments and motels can be organized similarly as the entry points are always on the outside, forgoing stairwells
• Each Building can be classified as a division given a supervisor and team that works under that said supervisor
• Condominiums and townhouse operations are similar
• This requires planning to address this efficiently due to the amount of potential victims and need for greater area safety