SOP 102 Mayday Procedures at Working Fires and Fire Training Exercises Copy.pdf

CHICAGO FIRE DEPARTMENT - STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE S.O.P. Number: 102.00 Effective Date: January 1, 2014 Section: 100 Subject: Mayday Procedures at Working Fires and Fire Training Exercise...

CHICAGO FIRE DEPARTMENT - STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE S.O.P. Number: 102.00 Effective Date: January 1, 2014 Section: 100 Subject: Mayday Procedures at Working Fires and Fire Training Exercises I. OBJECTIVE: This Standard Operating Procedure: A. Creates a Chicago Fire Department (CFD) procedure for incidents that involve Mayday situations at Working Fires and Fire Training Exercises; and B. Outlines the duties and responsibilities of members operating at incidents that involve a Mayday at Working Fires and Fire Training Exercises. II. DEFINITIONS: Mayday: A declaration made when members at an emergency incident or training exercise find themselves, or other CFD members, in an extremely dangerous situation, in the hazardous area. Including, but not limited to: A. Injured and in need of immediate assistance; B. Lost; C. Trapped; D. Out of air; E. Any circumstance where a member needs to be removed from a hazardous area. III. COMMUNICATIONS PLAN AND RADIO PROCEDURES: A. The following radio channels shall be utilized, as indicated in the table below, during a Mayday incident at Working Fires and Fire Training Exercises. Company Officers shall ensure that all members under their command are on the appropriate tactical channel. B. Until the arrival of the Command Van, Engineers shall monitor the tactical channel as well as the appropriate Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC) dispatch channel. SOP 102.00 Original page 1 of 6 CFD Radio Assignments Channel Name Zone Channel Operational Use Office of Emergency MAIN FD/EMS 1 Communications with OEMC. Management and Communications (OEMC) Office of Emergency ENGLEWOOD FD/EMS 2 Communications with OEMC. Management and Communications (OEMC) Alternate Fireground ADMINISTRATIVE FD/EMS 3 Alternate Fireground tactical channel used during a MAYDAY incident or as indicated by the Incident Commander. Fireground FIREGROUND FD/EMS 4 Fireground tactical channel during normal operations; RIT channel used by RIT, and companies with lost/trapped/missing/distressed/ members, during a MAYDAY incident. Fire Command FIRE COMMAND FD/EMS 5 Channel used by the Incident Commander to communicate with Chief Officers and/or Sector Chiefs at extra-alarm fires or other large-scale incidents. EMS Command EMS COMMAND FD/EMS 6 EMS tactical channel that may be used as indicated by the EMS Command Chief and/or the Incident Commander. EMS Operations EMS OPERATIONS FD/EMS 7 EMS tactical channel that may be used as indicated by the EMS Command Chief and/or the Incident Commander. Alternate Fireground OPS channels FD/EMS 8 Alternate Fireground tactical channels (8, 9 and 10) 9 that may be used as indicated by the 10 Incident Commander (fires in close proximity, high-rise search and rescue, staging, etc.). SOP 102.00 Original page 2 of 6 IV. DISPATCH: A. When a member declares a Mayday, the Incident Commander (IC) shall request a Fire Mayday Response through the OEMC. B. Upon receiving a Mayday request from the Incident Commander, the OEMC shall dispatch a Fire Mayday Response consisting of: 1. One (1) additional Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) 2. One (1) Special Operations Battalion Chief 3. One (1) Safety Chief 4. One (1) additional Squad Company, or two (2) Squad Companies if a Squad was not initially dispatched to the original incident 5. Collapse Response consisting of Collapse Rescue Truck 5-2-1 and Lumber Truck 5- 2-2. If the Incident Commander deems the Collapse Response unnecessary for a specific Mayday incident (for example: Water Rescue Incident, Hazardous Materials Incident, etc.), the Incident Commander may cancel the Collapse Response and return these companies. 6. One (1) Air Mask Truck 7. One (1) Light Wagon 8. An EMS Plan 1, if the original incident did not already include an EMS Response Plan. Any escalation to an EMS Plan 2 or EMS Plan 3 shall be at the discretion of the Incident Commander. 9. Any additional resources as deemed necessary by the Incident Commander. C. Upon receiving a Fire Mayday Response request, the OEMC shall also escalate a Still Alarm or Still and Box Alarm to the next level of alarm. Any escalation of alarm above a 2-11 Alarm shall be at the discretion of the Incident Commander. V. SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS: A. All members shall be proficient with the use of portable radios and understand their capabilities and limitations. B. All members shall properly wear the appropriate complement of PPE for their assigned task (SCBA straps buckled, hood in position, etc.). Company Officers and Chief Officers shall ensure compliance with this. SOP 102.00 Original page 3 of 6  C. All members shall conduct a structured Risk Management Assessment of all incidents. Any significant risks shall be communicated to the Incident Commander, who can make an informed decision. D. All members shall exercise radio discipline at all times, especially during a Mayday incident. VI. PROCEDURES: Members shall observe the following procedures when a Mayday is declared at a Working Fire or Fire Training Exercise: A. To clear all radio traffic on the tactical channel and to make all members aware of the Mayday situation, the member requesting the Mayday shall repeat the word MAYDAY three (3) times and, if possible, wait for acknowledgement before transmitting the remaining information. B. As soon as a Mayday is declared, all other radio traffic shall cease until all Mayday information is transmitted. (Exception: When the member who declares a Mayday waits for acknowledgement, only the Incident Commander or designee may acknowledge the Mayday.) C. The member who declared the Mayday shall provide as much information as possible. 1. “L.I.P.” is a useful acronym for ensuring that all pertinent information is transmitted: a. Location – Probable or last known location of the firefighter(s). b. Identification – Firefighter(s) name, rank, and company. c. Problem – The reason for the Mayday. 2. Example 1 (member waits for acknowledgement of the initial Mayday): Officer: “MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY.” IC: “This is Battalion 26. Who has a MAYDAY?” Officer: “This is Truck 99, we are in the third floor kitchen in Sector 1(Side A) and found Firefighter Williams from Truck 98. He fell and is unconscious.” SOP 102.00 Original page 4 of 6  3. Example 2 (member does not wait for acknowledgement of the initial Mayday): Firefighter: “MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY. This is Firefighter Smith from Truck 99, I am in (Side C) in the basement, I fell through the floor and I am injured.” IC: “This is Battalion 26. Message received, Firefighter Smith. We are deploying the RIT to you.” D. After a Mayday is declared, the Incident Commander shall order all normal fireground radio traffic to switch to the alternate tactical channel. Only the following shall remain on the original tactical channel, which shall become the RIT channel: 1. The member who declared the Mayday. 2. The company of the member who declared the Mayday. 3. The company with the lost, trapped, missing, or distressed member(s), if different from the company who declared the Mayday (see Example 1 from above). 4. The RIT. VII. SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS: A. When a Mayday is declared at a Working Fire or Fire Training Exercise, companies not involved in the Mayday shall continue with their assigned tasks unless otherwise ordered. A Mayday does not automatically require an Emergency Evacuation. B. All members shall remain constantly aware of their location, in case they should need to call for assistance. C. The Incident Commander must be prepared to assign an additional company to the RIT in order to provide protection or help mitigate the rescue (for example: an Engine Company to provide a charged hose line or an additional Truck/Squad to assist with searches, movement of debris or removal of the downed member.). D. The Command Van operating on scene shall monitor all tactical channels in use at an incident (for example: FIREGROUND, FIRE COMMAND, EMS OPS, or any other tactical channel) to remain alert for possible Maydays. SOP 102.00 Original page 5 of 6 VIII. RESPONSIBILITIES: A. Chief Officers and Company Officers shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with the provisions of this SOP. B. Chief Officers and Company Officers shall conduct Company School to ensure that all members are aware of the provisions of this SOP. C. It is the responsibility of all members to have a thorough knowledge of this SOP. BY ORDER OF: José A. Santiago Fire Commissioner TO BE READ AT FOUR (4) ROLL CALLS AND POSTED. Distribution: A, F SOP 102.00 Original page 6 of 6