309.00 REGIONAL High Rise.docx

STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES SECTION: 300.00 / Regional Operational Procedures Guideline: 309.00 High Rise SOP Effective Date: 06-10-05 Revision Date: 1/2023 309.00 HIGH RISE Purpose To provide a systematic framework for occupant evacuation, fire extinguishment, property conservation, and personnel...

STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES SECTION: 300.00 / Regional Operational Procedures Guideline: 309.00 High Rise SOP Effective Date: 06-10-05 Revision Date: 1/2023 309.00 HIGH RISE Purpose To provide a systematic framework for occupant evacuation, fire extinguishment, property conservation, and personnel safety, through effective scene management at fires occurring in hi-rise buildings within the regional response district. Definition: Any building which is (3) floors or greater, has stair wells and/or lobby entry access points. Priorities Rapid determination of the degree of the emergency and actions needed to begin mitigating the incident Early initiation of the Incident Management System to include the addressing of: Establishment of Command, outside in a safe area Fire floor identification and consideration of an additional alarm if on second floor or above Rescue and fire attack w/ consideration of exposure protection if applicable Water supply establishment Building ventilation and control of HVAC system Lobby control Secondary Priorities Control of internal building systems (alarm panels and internal communications) Air supply Staging (interior and exterior) Additional resources (law enforcement, etc.) Rehabilitation Elevators Considering the inherent dangers that elevator travel can present during a fire situation to civilians and firefighters inside the building, elevators shall not be used. Securing control of elevators and ensuring that they remain on the first floor will be addressed early into the incident. Stairs will be used for evacuation and floor entry. Lobby Control Assumes responsibility for maintaining stairway access, operation of enunciator panels, communication systems and building controls located at ground level, and for the stockpiling and movement of equipment from the lobby to the resources sector. All upward personnel movement gets logged in this sector. Lobby control should be assigned early to the officer of the second-in engine unless otherwise assigned by the IC. Resources Sector This sector should be established in a convenient area providing good access to the fire operations area. Two floors below the fire floor has historically been proven to be a suitable location for this sector, near designated stairwells when feasible This sector supplies manpower and equipment to provide direct support for firefighting efforts. First Alarm Assignment priorities The success of an incident of this type depends on decisions made and actions taken upon arrival of the first-in units. The time needed to get personnel and equipment in place is the single greatest difference between controlling an incident in a high-rise structure as opposed to the same size fire at ground level. “Nothing Showing” A. First-In Company Conducts a rapid scene assessment, assigns the second-in engine to stage at the standpipe/sprinkler connection and assigns remaining units to stage uncommitted until assessment is complete. Disregards or assigns companies proportionate to the degree of the incident. “Smoke or Flames showing” A. First-In Company After a visual, and then radio size-up, the officer establishes command and leads the company as the fire attack/rescue team into the building. If smoke or flames are showing upon arrival, a second alarm will be requested. The officer maintains command until relieved by a chief officer on the outside who will establish the command post. The primary responsibility of this crew is to locate and identify the degree of the emergency, determine its scope, and attempt to extinguish the fire. Experience has shown that the most effective means of saving lives and facilitating rescue in a high-rise fire is an aggressive attack on the fire. They should be outfitted with, at a minimum, their SCBA, spare bottles, portable radios, forcible entry tools, flashlights, and their high-rise pack. B. Second-In Company Supplying water to the building’s standpipe/sprinkler system will be the first responsibility of the second-in engine company and will be accomplished by the driver engineer and a firefighter. This company will also establish Lobby Control; will have a significant responsibility for personnel safety, access routes, surveillance, and operation of the enunciator panel. They will also assist the Incident Commander with verification of personnel accountability. Lobby Control will assign a firefighter to take control of and return all elevators to the first floor for the purpose of shutting them down, and assign a firefighter to shut down the HVAC system. The act of shutting down the main electrical system is widely discouraged due to the fact that the shutdown procedures in these large buildings are complex and extremely dangerous. Thus, the buildings electrical system will be shut down only by the building engineer or electric company. Coordination of logistical support between Level II Staging and Resource Staging will also be the responsibility of the Lobby Control sector. Additional Companies Resource Staging should be the next priority to be addressed by one of the remaining first alarm companies. Resource Staging personnel may either set up in a spacious area of the ground floor or ascend by a safe route to the second floor and set up staging for equipment and personnel. Crews will be assigned from here. Level II Staging will consist of units and their crews on the outside (located in a safe and uncommitted area usually a block or so away), and can be managed by any available unit responding on the additional alarm. Additional Work Groups Depending upon the degree of the incident, it may be necessary to assign additional sectors as needed in order to maintain your span of control. Listed below are some examples: Stairwell Support coordinates and supervises movement of equipment in an organized manner from ground level to the fire floor. Rescue coordinates egress of building occupants to a “safe refuge” area inside the building, or to an area outside and away from the building. Rehab provides an area for firefighters who have been active to take a break and be assessed by medical personnel before returning to work. Search Priorities Units assigned to the “search” mode will have to conduct a thorough search of the entire building before notifying the IC of an “all clear”. It is understood that a complete search may not be possible until the fire has been extinguished, but it should be accomplished as soon thereafter as possible. Geographical documentation of this event will be necessary to eliminate unnecessary search duplication, and insure its success. All searches initiated should include the presence of a charged line, which should be used for protection, extinguishment, and as a reference point during the search. Evacuation/relocation Priorities In most situations, evacuation of all of the occupants to a safe outside refuge should be easily accomplished. However, if the building houses a large population or a substantial number of compromised or elderly occupants, evacuation to an outside safe refuge may be impossible. Consideration should then be given to relocating at least some of these occupants to a tenable safe refuge below the fire floor until additional manpower can facilitate a complete evacuation. Ventilation A ventilation sector should be established as soon as possible. The preferred method will be vertical ventilation. The ventilation sector shall determine the need to shut down the HVAC system and/or opening up above the stairwell. If the need to do so is apparent, it needs to be accomplished as soon as feasible. Otherwise, heat, fire, and smoke can quickly be spread throughout the structure. The use of horizontal ventilation is usually difficult to accomplish but can be used under certain circumstances when it can be accomplished quickly and easily such as in the case of small fires confined to a small area, etc. Command must take into consideration the dangers to those on the ground caused by falling glass and shall clear personnel and protect exposed hoses in the area below the affected windows. A large volume fan should be utilized at the opening to all stairwells to pressurize the stairwell and to provide an upward current of air. This not only helps keep smoke out of the stairwell, but maintains a cleaner environment and clearer view for descending occupants and ascending firefighters. The ventilation sector must insure that the doors in the stairwell remain closed. Personnel with radios shall check each floor to ensure that all doors are closed. Air Supply All alarm companies, after the initial arriving units, shall bring at least one spare bottle per person to the lobby. All personnel ascending to the Resource Sector shall carry one spare bottle with them. Consider using a “shuttle system” to move bottles to upper floors. This can be accomplished if descending crews carry down (1) empty bottle per person. High-Rise Pak Composition High rise packs are located on T261, E262 and E263. The high-rise packs consist of 2 packs for each apparatus. Pack #1 contains: 7 ft. of 3” hose 1 – 2 ½” x 1¾” Gated wye 2 – 50’ sections of 1¾” hose 1 – Spanner Wrench Pack #2 contains: 2 – 50’ sections of 1¾” hose 1 – 3-piece Elkhart nozzle (This nozzle will allow for a straight stream or a conventional fog nozzle.) 1 – Spanner Wrench High-Rise Fireground Safety Never operate alone. A minimum for any task is two firefighters with a radio. If you get into trouble, report it early on. Waiting to call may be your last mistake. Do not allow doors to lock behind you. Be equipped with necessary forcible entry tools. Monitor your air closely. Diving out of a window is not an option in a high-rise. Do not attempt to change out air bottles in smoky conditions. Do not store air bottles in stairwells. They can cause falls, and if loose can be dangerous to descending occupants. Maintain at least a 200’ clear perimeter around the building. Be cautious of your back-swing when forcing doors and windows in smoky conditions. If sent into remote areas of the building, take a spare bottle. If you have not reached or completed your objective by the time your first bottle is spent, use the second bottle to immediately leave the area. Once again, use your hoseline as a reference point when searching in smoke. Remember, female couplings will take you back to the stairs. Maintain full passport accountability, pass alert, and par counts.