FT1 CH.3 // Early Traditions & History

1. 1.Who were the "Corps of Vigiles" (Cohortes Vigilum) and how were they used?

A nightly patrol of slaves who protected Rome from fire for 500 years. They watched for fires, alerted citizens, and enforced fire safety. 

Who likely invented the first fire pump, known as a siphona?

Ctesibius

What is the cheapest, most plentiful, and most effective agent for fighting fires

Water

Laws and ordinances enacted to prevent or reduce the devastation of fires may be traced back to the Norman conquest of what country in which year?

England, 1066

What method of summoning volunteer firefighters was used up until the modern era of electronic communications?

Ringing Church Bells

William the Conqueror required that all fires in each household had to be extinguished at nightfall by what process?

Couvre Feu, know as Curfew

In 1189, the first lord mayor of London issued the earliest known fire and building code for houses, walls and roofs.  What were the construction requirements according to his order and what was banned?

Houses were to be made of stone, roofs made of slate or burnt tile, Party walls to be placed between attached buildings that were 16 feet high and 3 feet in breadth. Thatched roofs were banned. 

In twelfth century England, some structures were built with an iron ring in each gable into which a ______________ could be inserted to assist with pulling down the gable or wall.

Fire hook

What was one of the common ways fires in 17th century England started?  

Unsafe Chimneys, Careless transportation of  burning peat sticks, congestion of cities

What is the term for an extensive fire which destroys a great deal of land or property?

Conflagration 

What was created as a result of the Great Fire of London in 1666?

Fire Brigades

The first fire brigades were established where and by whom?

Britain, Made by insurance companies to protect the property they were insuring 

What is a fire mark; how was it used in Colonial America compared to England?

A marker made by insurance companies for identifying policyholders buildings. The insurance companies would only attend the fire if the building showed their marker on it. 

The Newsham pumper from England was the first hand tub apparatus to use brakes.  What were the brakes and how were they used to assist with water flow from the pumper?

Long wooden bard for pumping handles. Men on either side would pump it up and down, causing a piston inside to suck and shoot water with immense pressure. 

In North American cities of the early 1600s, who were the people appointed for each section of the city to help reduce the likelihood of fire?

Fire wards, Fire Wardens and Building Surveyors

What is the name of the wooden noise makers used by fire wardens (who patrolled the streets of New York) so they could rouse citizens if there was a fire?

Rattlers

In 1743, what early American fire equipment was built by Thomas Lote and to what city was it delivered?

Fire Engine was delivered to New York City 

The New York-style hand engines, with its goose-neck design and threaded hose connection, allowed for fighting of fires in what areas?

Allowed the hose line to be taken close to or even in the fire building 

What were the first fire extinguishers?

The buckets of water people were required to keep in their homes

The first patented portable fire extinguishers contained what extinguishing agent?

Water

What was the first organized method of notifying the public of emergencies?

The Town Crier

What city became the first to use a fire alarm telegraph system?

Boston 

What communication system is the primary method of notification for emergency response personnel?

Telephone

What is the primary reason that emergency responders use mobile data communications systems?

To Reduce radio traffic between dispatcher and units operating in the field or firehouses

Volunteer fire fighting spread throughout North America following which historic event?

The Revolutionary War 

In the early years of the volunteer fire companies, who filled the ranks of these crews so they could maintain socially exclusive firehouses?

Men of Means 

Rivalries between volunteer fire companies in some areas led to employing a child to dash to the scene of a fire and cover the nearest fire plug with a barrel. What was the name given to these children?

Plug Uglies

In an effort to create a major improvement over the old, leaky sewn hose originally used by volunteer firefighters, what was developed by Philadelphia (PA) volunteer fire fighters?

The Hose Wagon

Who, along with other residents, established the first fire organization in Philadelphia known as the Union Volunteer Fire Company?

Benjamin Franklin 

In its earliest North American form, the first fire insurance company not only insured against fires but also provided what service?

Fire Response 

Large cities created a water system using what material as the water mains?

Logs 

hich United States city had the first fully paid fire department, primarily because bickering volunteers would not accept a steam engine in the city and the wild fights between rival companies would become so intense that fires would burn uncontrolled?

Cincinatti 

Before horses were introduced, how were steam engines pulled?

Large groups of men would pull by hand 

How did the Dalmatian become the best dog for clearing the road and chasing away stray dogs that could scare the horses as the horse-drawn steamer responded to a fire?

They had a special bond with the horses and loved running alongside the carriages 

What caused the demand for ladder work and ladder companies to develop?  

The increase of multi-story buildings 

Which fire apparatus was used to extinguish fires in hard-to-reach places?

Ladders

Before there were hand-drawn hook and ladder trucks, what did early ladder companies consist of?

Men who carried the ladders to the scene by hand 

What contribution to fire apparatus development was made by Daniel Hayes in 1870?

Aerial Ladder Truck 

The technological advancements in fire fighting protective clothing and self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) offered what benefit to firefighters?

Protected them from hazards on the scene. The SCBA purified the air by removing contaminants and it provided clean air from an uncontaminated source

What emerging innovation has been integrated into PPE for personnel accountability monitoring from a central location?

Radio Frequency Identification or Global Positioning Systems 

Buckets of water homeowners were required to keep at the ready beside their doors might be considered the first examples of?

Fire Extinguishers 

List some of the examples of alarm and communication systems used from colonial times, to the industrial revolution to today.

Town Crier, Watchmen and Watchtowers, Telegraph Alarm Systems, Telephone Systems, Radio Communications, Pagers/Personal alerting Systems, Mobile Data Communications Systems (MDCS)

What historic fire is commemorated during Fire Prevention Week and when did it occur?

Great Chicago Fire of 1871

What historic fire led to the creation of the NFPA® Committee on Safety to Life?

Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, 1911

What historic fire led to the need for more adequate exits in hotels and public buildings?

Winecoff Hotel Fire, 1946

What historic school fire resulted in the swiftest action in the wake of a major fire?

Our Lady of the Angels School Fire, 1958

What factors contributed to the high fatality rate at the Iroquois Theater Fire in December 1903 (602 deaths) and what were the subsequent code changes that followed?

Most of the scenery in the theatre was combustible and there was a lack of visible exits. In result, there’s now panic hardware at exits with outward swinging doors. There’s only a certain number of theatre seats allowed in an aisle. Only a certain amount of combustible material is allowed.  

What factors contributed to the high fatality rate at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in September 1911 (146 deaths) and what were the subsequent code changes that followed?

Lack of sprinkler systems, faulty fire escape, one way out and in, open buckets of oil. The NFPA 101 Life Safety Code was created which established requirements for means of egress. 

What historic fire in November 1942 caused fire officials to look at the problems of building construction, exit requirements, building materials, and building conditions that can endanger occupants, thereby re-establishing the emphasis on fire prevention?

Cocoanut Grove Nightclub Fire in Boston 

As a direct result of firefighter deaths and injuries, what are three changes that were made to increase firefighter safety awareness in the fire station, en route to the scene, and at the emergency site?

1. Enhanced training and safety programs

2. Improved apparatus design and seat belt use

3. Use of incident command system and accountability systems

Since firefighters are up to one-third less efficient in their gear, what do many fire departments require of firefighters to reduce injury rates?

They require them to maintain a high level of physical fitness

To reduce firefighter deaths and injuries while responding to emergencies, what are apparatus operators taught about approaching and proceeding through intersections?

Stop at a red light or stop sign 

At the fire scene, the OSHA Two In/Two Out requirement enforces what safety practice for firefighters entering a structure with a hazardous atmosphere?

Two go into the building and two stay outside to assist in rescue. It supports safe entry and rapid intervention.