1. Knowledge is Survival
Produced by John J. McNeil
Rhodes Consultants, Inc.Fast Reading for the Fire Service
Purpose of FirePurpose of FirePurpose of FirePurpose of Fire----ZineZineZineZine
To provide members of
the fire service with
quips of valuable
information from a
plethora of resources
available. Fire-Zine ‘s
format is structured in
categories similar to
the general staff
positions in the
incident command
system. It is designed
as a fast read for a
fast paced fire
service.
Command
Rules of Engagement
for Firefighter Safety
(IAFC)
Always conduct a 360
size up, an occupant
survival profile and a
risk assessment;
consider resources
versus incident condi-
tions to determine the
proper mode of opera-
tion; stop unsafe prac-
tices; maintain fre-
quent communications
with interior crews;
ensure accurate ac-
countability of every-
one on the scene;
operate RIT and Rehab
throughout all working
incidents.
For further information
on the rules of engage-
ment go to
http://
www.iafcsafety.org.
Operations
Fire, Lightweight
Construction and
Thermal Imaging
Cameras
(ISFSI)
According to tests
conducted by the Chi-
cago Fire Depart-
ment, IAFC, Under-
writers Laboratories
and Michigan State
University through an
AFG grant, light-
weight construction
has been determined
to fail three times
sooner than conven-
tional construction
material. Modern con-
struction is engineer-
ing based on math
rather than mass.
Less mass = less time
for interior opera-
tions. Upon arrival the
officer has to plan the
attack based on how
much time will have
passed during deploy-
ment and how in-
volved the fire will be
upon the nozzle enter-
ing the doorway.
Additionally, an ancil-
lary finding during
this testing was that
thermal imaging cam-
eras were not reliable
in identifying fire
presence beneath
floors above fire in-
volvement. The floor-
ing and carpeting
shielded the extent of
fire involvement to
those operating on
the floor above the
fire.
The significance of
conducting an initial
360 upon arrival can-
not be substituted by
the thermal imaging
camera.
October 21, 2010

2. Fire-Zine Know ledge i s S urviv al Volume 1 Issue 1
Page 2
Planning
Centralized Command
(Fire Command—Alan
Brunacini)
Successful Operations =
Application of an effec-
tive overall management
system and a strong cen-
tral command.
No Command At All =
everyone operating in the
“free enterprise system”,
where companies commit
them-
selves
independ-
ently with
no central
coordina-
tion.
Multiple,
Competi-
tive Com-
mand =
the fire
ground
quickly
becoming
occupied by several
highly mobile command
officers, each with a differ-
ent plan and wanting a piece
of the action.
Leadership Quote
“Leadership is a potent
combination of strategy
and character. But if you
must be without one, be
without the strategy.”
--- General H. Norman
Schwarzkopf
Logistics
Policy / SOG Development
There are numerous fire ser-
vice departments and organi-
zations that have developed
policies and guidelines for
both administrative and op-
erational purposes. Rather
than completely re-inventing
these procedures, policies
and guidelines for your de-
partment, time and effort can
be saved by using others’
guidelines as a start-
ing point for your own
organization. Adjust-
ments can be made to
these documents in
order to make the
documents appropri-
ate for your particular
organization and com-
munity. Below are
some sights with pro-
cedures, policies and
guidelines available
for anyone’s use.
Reference is made to
NFPA and OSHA
standards as resources.
“The worst fire
ground plan is no
plan (the next worse
is two plans)”.
—Fire Chief Alan
Brunacini, Retired,
Phoenix FD
“The fewer parts of the
plan, the fewer things
can get screwed up”.
Lexington County, SC Fire Department
www.lex-co.com/departments/publicsafety/fireservice
Phoenix, AZ Fire Department www.phoenix.gov/fire/volume1.
Everyone Goes Home www.everyonegoeshome.com/resources.
City of Anderson, SC Fire Department
www.cityofandersonsc.com/departments/fire_department/sog/index.html
IAFC
www.iafc.org/associations/4685/files/downloads/vehicle_safety/
vehclsafety_iafcpolandproceds.pdf
City of Columbia, SC Fire Department
www.columbiasc.net/fire/196.
Administration & Fiscal
Thermal Imaging Camera Grant
Opportunity
500 for Life is a charitable
organization dedicated to saving
the lives of fire victims and
firefighters by providing thermal
imagers to fire departments that
do not have the funds to purchase
them on their own.
500 For Life has partnered with
Fireman's Fund Insurance
Company's Heritage Program and
the National Fallen Firefighters
Foundation to qualify and priori-
tize fire departments in need of
these thermal imagers based on
criteria including, but not limited
to, the number of fires fought
each year and the amount of
funding available from other
sources. This ensures that fire
departments that need them the
most and can afford them the
least are the first to receive them.
For further information or to sub-
mit a proposal, go to the following
website:
www.500forlife.com