Every so often, I get top-tier intel forwarded to me from our brothers and sisters in the fire service which merits our immediate and complete attention (yes, I try to educate myself on what’s happening across all public safety disciplines).
Chief Billy Goldfeder — who produces an excellent email newsletter called “The Secret List” — sent out a note this weekend entitled “When Cops Arrive At Fires First: Pass THIS On To Your PD” (it is also posted online here).
Goldfeder’s recent counsel stems — at least in part— from the tragic incident in which NYPD Officer Dennis Guerra was killed in the line of duty while responding to a fire the Coney Island section of Brooklyn.
Guerra’s partner — Officer Rosa Rodriguez — suffered carbon monoxide poisoning and was hospitalized for more than a month (she was released late last month).
Goldfeder wrote, “PD arriving first at fires isn’t all that unusual — and in some areas, it is usual.”
For example, in the small town where I grew up — with an all-volunteer fire service — police were ALWAYS first on scene. By a fairly wide margin, actually.
“In many cases,” Goldfeder wrote, “PD have become victims that we have to deal with upon arrival in addition to the initial fire or emergency. This issue isn’t them ‘getting in the way’ — the issue is, in so many cases, the lack of understanding of the conditions they are placing themselves in. While the intent is admirable, the goal is to help people with a problem — while not becoming part of the problem,” he wrote.
Goldfeder shared a list of guidelines issued jointly by NYPD and FDNY following the death of Officer Guerra and serious injury suffered by Officer Rodriguez.
NYPD / Fire Operations Dos and Don’ts
• Do verify address
• Do make sure that FD is responding
• Do determine location of fire in building
• Do develop info by questioning all present: apartment number, people at home, out of building, trapped...
• Do advise dispatcher if you are entering building
• Do close all doors behind you, confining fire
• Do have an escape plan (secondary exit)
• Do check floor layout on floor below fire
• Do use wall as a guide and count doors from stairway so you can find stair doorway on your return (may lose visibility in seconds)
• Do leave a member at door to fire area to guide you back (shine light / make noise) — never enter fire floor alone
• Don’t block front of the building
• Don’t park on hydrants
• Don’t use elevators
• Don’t go above the lowest level of the fire
• Don’t ventilate, breaking glass or opening doors
• Don’t stay inside any longer than necessary
• Don’t expect conditions to remain the same as when you entered. Conditions will change quickly and often. You are unprotected and it can become untenable rapidly
• Don’t remain in building after FD arrives
• Don’t carry victims from fire area — drag them, staying low to the floor
• Don’t assume all windows can be opened from inside — you could end up trapped
My friend Rick Markley — Editor in Chief of FireRescue1.com — summed it up well when he wrote:
“The list is in no way a knock on police officers’ courage. There have been many times police have made civilian saves at great risk to themselves. There are many other instances where police involvement has made the situation worse — worse for firefighters, police, and civilians,” Rick wrote.
“The do’s and don’ts do a very good job of laying out what police should do when they arrive on scene, especially when they choose to attempt a rescue. The list essentially does the work for fire and police departments everywhere,” he concluded.
You’re out there on the street to help people, and come hell or high water, that’s precisely what you’re likely to try to do when you come upon a fire (whether that be a vehicle or a structure). Please keep the above information in mind. Better still, do your best to ensure that your entire department has coordinated with your fire partners to build a list like this.
Stay safe out there my friends.
