Firefighters have been provided with new extinguishment strategies that offer better speed, effectiveness, and safety. A triple win! Continuing on the theme introduced with my last post (https://community.fireengineering.com/profiles/blog/show?id=1219672%3ABlogPost%3A691624) regarding the new fire attack vectors recommended by fire dynamics research, first addressing Attic fires, now we will…
ContinueAdded by Mark J. Cotter on October 21, 2019 at 8:30am — No Comments
Much of the energy expended in promoting, discussing, and opposing Modern Fire Attack (MFA) methods regards the use of exterior streams for controlling fires in structures, an understandable focus given the rather revolutionary, and therefore controversial, nature of the research findings. (In a nutshell, applying water from the outside was found to be a whole lot more useful, and a whole lot less harmful, than we had believed.)…
ContinueAdded by Mark J. Cotter on October 7, 2019 at 7:00am — No Comments
Everybody knows you need water to control fire. (And, by “everybody”, I mean firefighters, scientists, politicians, civilians, immigrants, elementary school children, your spouse and kids. Everybody.) That’s why fire apparatus are primarily designed around the need to quickly transport water to the location of a fire, engineered as they are with the capacity to carry a booster tank, hose, pump, appliances, and the personnel needed to put it all to work. It didn’t take a series of high-tech…
ContinueAdded by Mark J. Cotter on November 5, 2018 at 10:20am — No Comments
Concluding my series of commentaries on the findings of the “Impact of Fire Attack Utilizing Interior and Exterior Streams on Firefighter Safety and Occupant Survival” collection of UL experiments, this installment will cover the 18 "Tactical Recommendations" from the "Full Scale Experiments" (https://ulfirefightersafety.org/docs/DHS2013_Part_III_Full_Scale.pdf). Inspired by the findings from this study, but…
ContinueAdded by Mark J. Cotter on September 17, 2018 at 7:37am — No Comments
We have come to the point in this series that we will be looking at the results of the type of experiments the fire service has been clamoring for since UL and NIST first began releasing findings from their fire dynamics research that challenged longstanding practices. (To be fair, only some members of the fire service wanted these additional studies, in large part to address the concerns of other members who didn’t think the previous tests…
ContinueAdded by Mark J. Cotter on August 13, 2018 at 8:56am — No Comments
Continuing this series of reviews of the UL’s Impact of Fire Attack Utilizing Interior and Exterior Streams on Firefighter Safety and Occupant Survival, having previously reviewed the results of Water Mapping (https://ulfirefightersafety.org/docs/DHS2013_Part_I_Water_Mapping.pdf), this installment will cover Air Entrainment (…
ContinueAdded by Mark J. Cotter on April 4, 2018 at 3:02pm — No Comments
The nozzle is the fire service’s iconic and essential tool, like the rifle to the soldier, the hammer to the carpenter, or the knife to the chef. While we have many other tools, and vital roles that don’t even involve water, when on the fireground most of them support or depend upon use of this appliance. Forcible entry clears its way, and ventilation clears its results. The protection of life and property relies on its expert use, and salvage protects the building and contents from the…
ContinueAdded by Mark J. Cotter on March 28, 2018 at 6:49am — No Comments
Not to be overly dramatic, but to me, fire attack is combat. Not much different than any other type of fight. My intention is to present an overwhelming force that ends the fight quickly and in my favor. This isn’t to be confused with fighting sports. In the sporting environment, it’s often my turn, your turn, then my turn, and so on. As my favorite defensive instructor says, “In a real fight, it’s my turn, my turn and my turn.” The enemy never gets a chance beyond the ambush! Also,…
ContinueAdded by Eddie Buchanan on December 24, 2016 at 11:31am — No Comments
We are learning that the fireground is more complex than we had previously understood, and we probably still don’t know the half of it. While the recommendations for tactical changes that have arisen from ongoing fire dynamics research have spawned the most discussion amongst members of our profession, the raw information alone was revolutionary in its own right, even absent the practical applications that followed. Flow paths, smoke as fuel, and the (actual) effects of hose…
ContinueAdded by Mark J. Cotter on December 12, 2016 at 7:08am — No Comments
From my perspective - that being someone who entered the fire service just as the era of "surround and drown" was being replaced by the "get in and hit it up close" approach - the most immediate and practical operational change inspired by fire dynamics research is the early application of water. While the recommendation to delay ventilation also has significant benefits - and loud critics - “opening up”, especially vertically, was a tactic that many of us who worked in small departments…
ContinueAdded by Mark J. Cotter on November 7, 2016 at 7:30am — No Comments
With all the recent fire studies conducted by UL, NIST, ISFSI, etc. the fire service is undergoing a renaissance...or at least that's what I thought. The aforementioned organizations have pumped out volumes of empirical data that we can consume and digest to make our profession smarter, more effective and most importantly, safer. Although over the past couple of months I have heard too many people spout misinformation regarding the findings of these studies. Specifically, I have had…
ContinueAdded by Nick Ledin on September 23, 2013 at 12:00am — 6 Comments
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