What type of Structure is this?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jim Mason on October 28, 2008 at 6:43pm

Joe thanks for submitting the photo!
Is it possible that this is a trailor sitting on a cement blocks? It also looks like it is made of lightweight frame trusses. Every body - This is the next question - What could we do to find out what we have here? Again, this is a size up thing> In a big way!!! Particularly for the officers of the companies first due on the scene. How could we find out? What do the members think out there??????????????

Permalink Reply by Joe Heim on October 28, 2008 at 7:35pm

You Got it!!! The trailer is over the garage area and the rest of the house goes to the left and around the back. This was an EXCELLENT learning experience for all that attended. Everyone from my department can pick out a house that is built around a trailer in that area. The downside to the training was we only got three burns out of it, the best part was we only got three burns out of it and everyone learned in a training environment and no one was hurt. If this was an actual structure fire we could have had firefighters along with civilians seriously hurt or killed. This was also the first backdraft I witnessed besides on video.

Permalink Reply by Jim Mason on October 29, 2008 at 7:18pm

Let's put it out to the group. I bet others have these things in their districts.
I like the good and bad of it! A little bit of training but not TOOO much of the hands on is enough any more for this "getting older " guy.
I have a better apreciation of giving lectures

Permalink Reply by John A. Van Doren on October 29, 2008 at 7:58pm

Everyone everywhere has these wonderful structures. Spotting them is pretty easy becasue of the vinyl sided low roof ranch styles. There are a couple of sub-divisions in our district that extensively used this resin based oriented strand board (OSB) for everything. Nice fuel orientations too. The building materials as structural components do what they are supposed to (if installed according to manufacturer guidelines), but when you add some heat...or water for that matter, they deteriorate at an alarming rate.

As far as the fire training structure pics. I feel sorry for the guys who had to prep and make it 1403 compliant. Turd polishing...They were lucky to get three fires...or as Joe said.

Permalink Reply by Jim Mason on October 30, 2008 at 4:06pm

Yeah These would be bad buildings to have a real fire. Failure galore , left and right. I'm sure it's only going to get worse for the future on the lighweight construction buildings.

Do you guys do any interior firefighting in these at all?

Permalink Reply by John A. Van Doren on October 30, 2008 at 4:35pm

We will...based on a mulitple variable mental checklist that is consider at each incident.

NIST has some excellent fire videos showing the growth, to the collapse, as well as the amount of time it takes. Learning from these videos can be a great resource in helping you establish the basis for you decisions to occupy or climb on a structure that is being consumed by fire, or altered by the chemical changes that temperature rise allows.

Permalink Reply by Joe Heim on October 30, 2008 at 4:40pm

Our department will go interior on these structures that are left in that particular area if we know it is a room and contents or confirmed people trapped. With that said this one is a definately a try to get to the roof and vent quickly and get down to open up that void space.

Permalink Reply by John A. Van Doren on October 30, 2008 at 5:04pm

Venting the gable ends on these types of structures is a very safe and efficient way to get the job done, AND keep our people on a safer more predictable platform.

Permalink Reply by Joe Heim on October 30, 2008 at 5:06pm

Thanks for the info, never thought of that, makes it alot easier.

Permalink Reply by John A. Van Doren on October 30, 2008 at 7:33pm

That's why we are here Brother...

Permalink Reply by Jim Mason on November 3, 2008 at 2:43pm

Venting the gable is good! I like to have the ceiling pulled at the front door to determine if the truss has fire in it or not. If we continue into the building I like to have the ceiling pulled as we move in. This way we will know if the fire has made it into the truss deeper inside. It may have not made it into the truss until after we are moving deeper in the building