Command and control ics chapter 6. Residential Building Construction

• Over 80% of fire deaths occur in residential occupancies.
• Approximately one-third of firefighter fatalities occur in residential structures.
• A single-family dwelling is a structure designed to house one family, typically one to three stories tall.
• Single-family dwellings vary greatly in size, shape, composition, and location.

Construction Types

• Wood frame (with wood, vinyl, aluminum siding, or brick veneer)
• Ordinary (masonry, wood-joist) construction
• Steel-frame construction (newer buildings)

Occupancy-Specific Cues

• Understanding building construction helps predict fire behavior and informs mitigation strategies.

Wall Construction

• Masonry with vinyl or aluminum siding or brick veneer.
• Wood frame (platform or balloon) with wood, vinyl or aluminum siding, or brick veneer.
• Partition walls are usually 1⁄2-inch drywall on wood or metal studs (16-24 inches apart).
• Older structures may have plaster walls over wood or metal lathe.

Roof Assemblies

• Flat roofs use:
  • Beam and rafter construction (old method): 2x6 or 2x8 lumber with diagonally laid sheathing or plywood/OSB.
  • Parallel-chord wood truss or plywood I beams with plywood/OSB sheathing (modern).
• Pitched roofs use:
  • Ridge-pole and rafter: 1x6 sheathing, indicating older construction.
  • Wood truss joined with gusset plates or gang nailers (modern).
• Gusset plates are plywood or sheet metal pieces laid over truss joints and nailed in.
• Gang nailers are thick sheet metal with points pressed into truss members to hold them together.

Access Issues

• Dwellings may be set back from the road, near wooded areas, or close to other dwellings making access difficult.
• Septic systems can further complicate access to the sides and rear of the structure.

Entry Points

• Front: Usually a single door to a foyer.
  • Stairs to the second floor are typically in the foyer in modern two-story dwellings.
  • Split-level dwellings have a landing between floors at the front door.
• Rear: Typically leads to a mud room, kitchen, or family room.
• Side: Often present, especially in homes with additions.
• Garage: Entrance from the attached garage into the living area is common.
• Basement: May have a separate exterior entrance.

Common Problems

• Single-family dwellings are occupied 24/7.
• There may be unattended children.
• Some dwellings (addresses) house the elderly or infirm.
• Overcrowding: Multiple families may inhabit a single-family dwelling.

Roof or Floor Assembly Construction Type

• Newer dwellings often have wood-truss roof and/or floor assemblies.
• Older dwellings typically have 2x8 solid lumber with 1x6 sheathing or plywood/OSB.
• Partition walls support the bottom truss chord and reduce collapse potential.

Floor Assemblies

• Beam and joist: Joists (e.g., 2x10 solid lumber) laid to a central wooden or metal I beam supported by lally columns.
• Lightweight: Parallel-chord wood truss or plywood I beams.

Fire Involvement Considerations

• Key Question: Has the fire extended to the roof-assembly area?
• Cues of probable roof-assembly involvement:
  • Major fire involvement in one top-floor room
  • Fire involvement in two or more top-floor rooms
  • Hot, rising smoke from attic vents
  • Fire venting through the roof
• Signs the fire likely will spread to the roof or ceiling assembly:
  • A well-involved single room on the top floor
  • More than one room involved on the top floor

Structural Deterioration and Collapse

• Early collapse is not typical.
• Fire in combustible floor/roof assemblies or truss construction increases collapse likelihood.
• Older buildings have pre-existing structural deficiencies (dry rot, altered bearing walls, voids).

Cue-Based Predictions

• Life hazard may be severe which means a thorough primary search is essential
• Dwellings should always be assumed to be occupied.
• Smoke conditions in the stairwell may be heavy, preventing occupant exit.

Incident Management Cues

• Single-family dwellings present typical challenges, but unusual construction or illegal use can occur.
• Limited resources require prioritized assignment and coordinated efforts.

Coordinated Operations

• Rescue and primary search should be coordinated with ventilation.
• Life safety is the top priority, and early ventilation should support rescue.
• Rescue/search teams need hand lines or appropriately placed lines.

Incident Command System (ICS)

• Each function (ventilation) needs supervision (Vent Group).
• Each geographic area needs supervision (Division 1, Division 2).
• A safety officer is needed at working incidents.

Strategy and Tactics

• Use divisions for better-defined responsibility and multitasking.
• The Ventilation Group is a task critical to the success of other operations
• Life safety is the highest priority.
• Confine the fire, protect the stairway, or ventilate before assigning personnel directly to search and rescue.
• Use different crews for the secondary search.
• Immediately start a primary search.
• Search the fire floor, floors above, and then the floor below.
• Check the rear of the building immediately after arrival.
• Check hiding places (under beds, closets, behind doors).

Fires Not Involving the Roof Assembly

• Take action with an aggressive interior attack with horizontal ventilation
• Assign personnel to check for extension to other rooms on the same floor, floors above, the attic, and below, in that order.

Fire in an Attic Space

• Determine if the fire started in or extended to the attic.
• Determine the roof assembly type.
• If roof construction is unknown, assume it is lightweight.
• Interior attack if risk is acceptable: Go to top floor, pull ceiling, and attack the fire with horizontal and vertical ventilation.
• If risk is unacceptable, use vertical ventilation only if it's safe and away from the fire and use exterior fire attack with heavy streams from the front and rear.

Basement Fires

• Basements vary in configuration (windows, exterior entrance, finished/unfinished).
• The basement is usually the entry point for electrical and gas service, and the gas meter is often located there.
• Actions for basement fires:
  • If the basement has windows and no exterior entrance, apply hand line streams through the windows.
  • With an exterior basement entrance, advance hand lines through this door.
  • If there are no basement windows or exterior doors, a Bresnan Distributor (cellar nozzle) can be used through a hole in the first floor.
  • Horizontally ventilate the first floor.
  • As a last resort, attack the fire via the interior stairs, but avoid other basement lines during this attack to prevent a fireball.

Summary

• Correctly interpret the cues, recognizing construction features and understanding how fire and products of combustion move to anticipate structural stability.
• Risk/benefit analysis is essential for every incident and the Incident Commanders course of action.
• Construction type provides critical information on roof and interior integrity that should influence decision making.