Chapter 03

Copyright © 2006 Thomson Delmar Learning

Introduction to Fire Protection 3rd EditionRobert Klinoff

Introduction to Fire Protection3rd Edition



Chapter 3

Public Fire Protection



Objectives

• Identify the origins of modern fire protection• Describe the evolution of fire protection• List the causes of the demise of the volunteer

fire companies in the major cities• Identify the U.S. fire problem• List the general responsibilities of the modern

fire service



Objectives (con’t.)

• Describe the evolution of modern firefighting equipment

• Describe the evolution of protective clothing and equipment

• Describe how major fire losses have affected the modern fire service

• List the reasons for fire defense planning



Objectives (con’t.)

• Define risk and risk management• Illustrate the fire department’s role in

community risk reduction



Introduction

• Fire existed for thousands of years before people learned to use it

• People learned to use fire approximately 200,000 to 400,000 years ago

• Learning how to control fire led to expansion, tools, and weapons

• The three main causes of hostile fire are men, women, and children



Evolution of Fire Protection

• Roman Corps of Vigiles (6 A.D)– Used buckets, axes and gave warnings

• Jamestown settlement (1607)– Used fire breaks, bucket brigades

• Peter Stuyvesant (1647)– Created building code

• Great fire of London (1666)– Started fire insurance companies



Evolution of Fire Protection (con’t.)

• Boston (1679)– First publicly funded fire department

• Ben Franklin– Union Volunteer Fire Company (1739)

• Water systems– Hollowed out logs for water mains

– Removed “fire plug” to access water




• Volunteer fire companies– First uniforms

• Cincinnati– First paid fire company (1853)




• Expanding Role of Modern Departments– Not just fire fighting

– Fire prevention

– Public safety education

– Medical aid

– Rescue services

– Hazardous materials response




• Fire service traditions– Proving yourself on fireground

– Painting engines red

– Entering at bottom of organization

• Firefighters need to be adaptable– Change is inevitable

• Change from fire suppression to medical aid as main service




• Change in fire service educational system– Rise of professionalism

– Adherence to national and state standards

– Increased desire for certification and college degrees

• In the future, a firefighter may be called public safety specialist or emergency services technician



Equipment

• Siphona: first known fire pump (see Figure 3-9)• First pumpers discharged water through

“gooseneck”• Hose developed to aid in water application• Original hand pumpers filled by buckets• Drafting hose invented



Equipment (con’t.)

• Hose companies developed• Original hand pumpers pulled by personnel• Invention of the steamer

– Pulled by horses

– Steam-operated pump

– Could pump for long periods

– Greater reach of water stream




• Introduction of ladder companies– Ladders carried on a wagon

– Taller buildings more accessible

– Aerial apparatus developed in 1870

– First aerial ladders extended by hand crank

– Next came spring-assisted, compressed air, and hydraulic ladders




• Chemical wagon (late 1800s)– One tank of soda and water, one with acid

– Mixed tanks to expel contents

– Limited by amount of water in tank

– May explode if hose plugged or kinked




• Steamer attached to gasoline-powered tractor– Replaced horses

– First gas-powered steamers unreliable

– Motorized apparatus eventually replaced all others

– Most common apparatus now is diesel-powered



Fire Service Symbols

• Maltese cross– Symbol of protection and badge of honor

– Awarded to the Knights of the Crusades

• Dalmatians– Assisted with horses

– Only recognized carriage dog



Fire Stations

• Needed when full-time firefighters were hired– Housed equipment before that time

• Designed to blend into neighborhood• Installed sliding poles and slides in multistory

buildings



Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

• Developed out of necessity• Uniforms identify fire company membership• Helmets protect from falling debris• Turnout (bunker) gear protect from heat and

water• SCBA protects firefighters’ respiratory system



Personal Protective Equipment

(PPE) (con’t.) • SCBA

– Self-contained breathing apparatus (see Figure 3-17)

– Reduces exposure to:• Toxic gases• Superheated air• Lowered oxygen concentrations• Smoke



Fire Losses• Conflagrations in many major cities

– “Great Chicago Fire” (1871)- 3 days 3 1/3 sq miles

– Peshtigo, Wisconsin (1871)-2,400 sq miles 1000 dead

– Baltimore (1904) – incompatible hose thread

– San Francisco (1906)

• More damage from resulting fire than earthquake

– Chelsea, Mass. (1908) ½ town destroyed same thing 65 yrs later



Fire Losses (con’t.)

• Common denominators– Combustible construction

– Narrow streets

– Ineffective codes

– Unprotected vertical shafts



The U.S. Fire Problem

• United States has one of the highest fire death rates per capita in the industrialized world

• Approximately 4,000 perish in fires each year• 22,000 are injured annually• 100 firefighters are killed annually (over 440

killed in 2001)



The U.S. Fire Problem (con’t.)

• Fire kills more Americans than all other natural disasters combined

• Fire is the third leading cause of accidental death in the home

• Approximately 80% of deaths occur in residential fires




• More than 2 million fires reported each year• More than $10 billion direct property loss• Senior citizens at highest risk of death• Children playing with fire cause 30% of fires

that kill children• Careless smoking causes most residential fire

deaths




• Arson is the leading cause of deaths, injuries, and fire loss in commercial structures

• Cooking is the leading cause of apartment fires and second leading cause of single-family residential fires




• Top five areas of origin in residences– Kitchen: 26%

– Bedroom: 13%

– Living room/den: 8%

– Chimney: 8%

– Laundry area: 5%




• Working smoke detectors double chances of surviving a fire

• Approximately 90% of homes have at least one smoke detector

• Half of residential fires and 3/5 of fatalities occur in residences with no smoke detector



The U.S. Fire Problem (con’t.)• Lightning causes many large acreage

wildland fires• Humans cause 60% of fires and 22% of the

acres:– Unattended campfires

– Burning trash

– Smoking

– Faulty equipment

• Arson accounts for 26% of fires 10% of the acres




• The year 2002 produced:– Over 88,000 reported wildland fires

– 7 million acres burned

– Suppression cost of $1.3 billion

– 30,000 personnel fought fires



Purpose and Scope of Fire Agencies

• Manage community risk– Trained personnel

– Specialized equipment

– Perceived risks

– Expressed through commitment of resources



Purpose and Scope of Fire Agencies (con’t.)

• Risks managed– Fire

– EMS

– Disasters

– Hazardous materials




• Increased responsibilities today– All types of rescue

– Public education

– Prevention

– Hazardous materials

– Arson investigation

– Weapons of mass destruction




• Increased responsibilities today (con’t.)– Weapons of mass destruction

– Cliff rescue

– Auto extrication

“To save lives and property from fire”



Fire Defense Planning

• Terms– Goal: a general statement of a desired result

– Objective: statement of measurable results to be achieved with resources available

– Policy: broad statement used to guide decision making and actions

– Procedure: a specific statement of how work is to be performed



Fire Defense Planning (con’t.)

• Four goals of fire protection– To prevent fires from starting

– To prevent loss of life when fires do start

– To confine fires to their origins

– To extinguish fires once they start




• First step: establish where problems lie using statistics– Type of loss

– Type of occupancy

– Time of day

– Ignition source

– Item first ignited

– Direct cause of loss




• Statistics used to determine goals/objectives• Goals/objectives must be politically and

financially attainable• To achieve objectives, resources must be

provided– Staffing standards (personnel)

• NFPA 1710 (career) and 1720 (volunteer) – Tools and equipment– Facilities




• Cost determination to provide desired level of service– Chief and staff prepare budget– Budget analysts review budget– Department seeks funding from legislative body

• Once funds are approved– Funds applied to achieve objectives– Results evaluated and plans changed to

address issues



All Hazard Planning

• Be prepared to respond to: – Floods, earthquakes, terrorism, medical

incidents, swift water, etc.

• Obtain necessary resources• Ensure interoperability and interagency

communication



Risk Management

• Risk is defined as:– Probability an undesired event will occur

– Harmful or undesirable consequence

– Severity of the harm

• Probability of occurrence expressed as:– Rare to high

– Numerically, such as 20% or a one in three chance



Risk Management (con’t.)

• Consequences include death, injury, and disaster

• Combined consequences become product of loss (consequence) and probability– High consequence, low probability

– Low consequence, high probability

– High consequence, high probability



Risk Management (con’t.)

• Comparison of risks and reduction of probability or consequence uses three control measures– Administrative (SOPs)

– Engineering (equipment design)

– Personnel protection



Risk Management Plan

• NFPA 1500 requirement establishes policy– Risk identification

– Risk evaluation

– Risk control techniques

– Program evaluation and review



Community Risk Reduction

• Planning steps– Preparation: assess risks

– Mitigation: reduce threat

– Response: apply resources to incident

– Recovery: return things to normal



Future of Fire Protection

• More toward fire prevention• Influence of outside factors

– Insurance companies

– Tax structure

– Advanced technology

– Construction methods

– Public demands

– OSHA and other laws



Summary

• Firefighters have a long history of tradition and sacrifice

• Future mistakes can be avoided by studying firefighter history

• Level of fire protection is determined by jurisdiction officials

• The modern fire service is an integrated delivery system containing many divisions

Chapter 03

Education

Transcript of Chapter 03