California Flashover

It is sad that it takes to firefighters to make the ultimate sacrifice, before recommendations are made to be sure that the same type of tragedy does not happen again. This is a classic example of what could (did) happen with a delayed response, and three firefighter staffing. There are many factors that play a roll here, but you can only wonder what the outcome would of been if these recommendations were implemented prior to the incident. Perhaps a fourth FF on the Engine could of initiated an attack on the fire. Just enough to cool the "box" enough to buy the FF's enough time to search. What would of happened had the crew got there 4 minutes earlier? Our Fire Service Leaders need to use reports like this as ammunition to defend our profession. This is a great tool that we can all use to educate our elected officials about the fire risk that both our citizens and our firefighters can encounter.

Two firefighters and two civilians perish in San Pablo house fire July 21, 2007
This report contains the Investigation Team’s findings and recommendations, which are intended to correct the identified deficiencies and move the Fire District forward. The Team recognizes and respects that crews encountered a challenging incident compounded by a reported rescue. In identifying and reporting findings and recommendations, the Team’s intent is not to place blame or point fingers at personnel who made split-second decisions while attempting to aggressively stabilize the incident and rescue the trapped occupants. We ask every person who reads this Report to have the same degree of respect, appreciation, and consideration for all of the personnel who responded to this incident. It is our hope that by sharing this report and the important lessons learned with other firefighters and the fire service community, it will help prevent a similar tragedy from occurring.