Chapter 7: Special Situations and Occupancies - Firefighting Tactics and Size-Up

Comprehensive practice flashcards covering Chapter 7 Special Situations and Occupancies, focusing on size-up factors, tactical operations, and fire spread mechanisms in basements, cellars, garden apartments, row houses, and town houses.

How are basements and cellars differentiated based on grade and finish?

One definition states that a cellar is more than $50\%$ below grade and a basement is less than $50\%$ below grade. Alternatively, an unfinished area is referred to as a cellar, while a finished room is called a basement.

Why is attacking a basement fire via interior stairs compared to crawling down a chimney?

Opening the basement door introduces fresh air that feeds the fire and increases its intensity, causing pent-up heat and smoke to slam directly into firefighters descending the stairs.

What hazard do French drains present to firefighters operating in subcellars?

While suitable for minor water runoff by allowing water to leach into the soil, French drains permit dangerous water buildup during a fire operation, which can cause firefighters to unexpectedly step into deep water.

What are common cellars in older mercantile areas, and why do they complicate firefighting?

They are shared below-grade areas between adjoining properties lacking fire walls, separated only by wooden partitions or chicken wire; smoke often shows from multiple properties, making the seat of the fire hard to locate, and they are not discernible from the exterior.

How can firefighters gain forcible entry into a commercial sidewalk metal cellar door locked from the inside?

By breaking out the concrete in each corner where the door is anchored, allowing the entire door to be lifted or slid aside.

According to USFA data (2010–2012), what are the leading causes and peak month for one- and two-family residential basement fires?

The leading reported causes were electrical malfunction ($19\%$), heating ($14\%$), appliances ($12\%$), and other unintentional, careless actions ($12\%$). The peak month was January ($12\%$).

What are the key indicators of an undiscovered cellar fire?

The presence of heat and smoke at the first-floor level or on all floors without visible fire, or smoke emitting from baseboards on lower floors and banking down on the top floor.

What is the proper tactic if a basement fire involves a natural gas meter?

Avoid extinguishing the fire involving the natural gas meter if doing so prevents shutting down the meter; the hose crew must protect the surrounding area from fire extension until the gas supply can be shut off.

What did research by UL and NIST at Governors Island reveal regarding fire spread from basements?

Fire is more likely to extend directly upwards through pipe chases and other shafts leading from the basement than via the interior stairs.

What basic operational rules must be observed when descending cellar stairs with a hose-line?

A charged line capable of controlling the fire must be ready immediately after exterior knockdown, there must be enough hose to reach the cellar floor without stopping, and crews must mount an aggressive attack once on the floor because retreating back up is extremely difficult.

How is a distributor nozzle deployed during a cellar fire when interior entry is impossible?

A hole is cut in the floor between joists, and the distributor (attached to a hose-line, usually $2\frac{1}{2}\text{ inch}$) is lowered through the opening until it touches the floor or an obstruction, then withdrawn half the distance and raised and lowered to cover the maximum area.

What are the requirements and drawbacks of utilizing high-expansion foam for cellar fire extinguishment?

Ventilation must be provided in front of the foam for proper distribution. The main drawbacks are that foam distribution is severely restricted by walls and closed doors, and hose streams must be shut down to prevent breaking down the foam.

What alternative basement ventilation method is shown in this diagram?

Cutting a hole in the floor beneath a first-floor window (the width of the window and extending out approximately $1\text{ foot}$ from the wall) directly over or past the fire, and using a hose-line on fog (hydraulic ventilation) or a window fan to exhaust smoke to the exterior.

How can store showcase windows be used to effect basement ventilation?

By breaking out the showcase windows and opening its elevated floor, or by breaking out the exterior building material (masonry, marble, or wood) directly beneath the showcase windows and pushing down any ceiling below.

What are deadlights, and how can they aid in cellar firefighting?

Deadlights are thick, round pieces of glass embedded in sidewalks that extend over older commercial basements to provide natural lighting; they can be broken out to effect basement ventilation.

What tactical action must be taken immediately when switching from an offensive to a defensive attack?

Ensure that a Personnel Accountability Report (PAR) is conducted.

What structural and layout features typically define garden apartments?

They are multiple-occupancy residential structures set back from the roadway, typically three stories or greater, built of wood frame (platform construction, often with brick veneer) or ordinary construction, and constructed in interconnected sections of around four apartments per floor.

Why do eaves and roof overhangs present a significant hazard in garden apartment fires?

Overhangs can extend up to $36\text{ inches}$ and may not be fire-stopped, allowing fire lapping out of top-floor windows to penetrate the eaves, circumvent attic fire walls, and rapidly spread into the common roof space.

What are poke-throughs in garden apartments, and why are they hazardous?

Holes or openings made in draft-stopping material during renovations or utility installations (such as wiring or piping) that breach compartmentation and create large, continuous void spaces for fire spread.

Why do garden apartment window designs often hinder occupant and firefighter egress?

Windows are frequently sliding glass units placed high on the wall to accommodate furniture, forcing occupants and firefighters to climb on chairs or furniture to reach ladders raised to the windows.

What eight factors can cause a fire in a garden apartment to burn out of control?

1. Insufficient resources
2. Lack of an adequate water supply
3. Late discovery of the fire
4. An incendiary fire
5. A fire involving flammable liquids
6. A poor plan of attack
7. Poor construction
8. Improper ventilation

What size hose-lines are recommended for garden apartment fires in individual living units versus basement storage rooms?

$1\frac{1}{2}\text{-inch}$ or $1\frac{3}{4}\text{-inch}$ hose-lines are sufficient for individual apartments, whereas storage room fires may require $2\frac{1}{2}\text{-inch}$ hose-lines due to heavy fire load and hazardous contents.

What are the comparative dimensions of standard row houses and town houses?

The average row house is $14\text{ feet}$ wide by $40\text{ feet}$ deep and two to three stories high (ranging from $13\text{ to }20\text{ feet}$ wide and $30\text{ to }65\text{ feet}$ deep). Town houses average $18\text{ feet}$ wide by $40\text{ to }50\text{ feet}$ deep.

How are common party walls constructed in row houses of ordinary construction?

They consist of a shared bearing wall built with a double (eight-inch) wythe of brick or eight-inch concrete or composition block.

How do stepped-back upper floors in row houses affect structure depth?

Upper floors are set back from the rear; for instance, a first floor may be $65\text{ feet}$ deep, the second floor $50\text{ feet}$ deep (set back by one room), and the third floor $35\text{ feet}$ deep (set back by another room).

What tactical hazard arises when row houses or town houses feature drive-in basement garages in the rear?

Because the basement is at grade level in the rear, the rear living quarters are raised an additional story above grade compared to the front, requiring longer ladders and potentially deceiving responders unless a $360\text{-degree}$ walk-around is performed.

Why do older row houses with brick bearing walls exhibit fire spread similar to balloon-frame construction?

Two-inch-wide by one-inch-deep wood studs are attached directly to the brick walls with floor boards butted against them, creating continuous vertical void spaces running unobstructed from the basement to the cockloft.

According to USFA data (2011–2013), what are the leading locations, symptoms, and times for civilian residential fire fatalities?

Thermal burns and smoke inhalation caused $90\%$ of deaths; bedrooms were the leading location ($50\%$); and the time period from $11\text{ p.m. to }7\text{ a.m.}$ accounted for $52\%$ of fatalities and $49\%$ of fatal fires.

What is the standard sectoring assignment on the initial dispatch for a row house fire?

The first-due engine and first-due truck are assigned to the front of the dwelling, while the second-due engine and second-due truck respond to the rear.

What hose-line setup is recommended to overcome long manual stretches and narrow streets in row house fires?

Stretching a $2\frac{1}{2}\text{-inch}$ or $3\text{-inch}$ hose-line from the street and attaching a gated wye to break down into $1\frac{1}{2}\text{-inch}$ or $1\frac{3}{4}\text{-inch}$ attack lines.

How can obsolete gravity hot-air coal heating systems accelerate fire spread in older row houses?

They utilize vertical sheet-metal-lined wall ducts leading to registers in each room and open grates in the first floor for cold-air return, providing a direct vertical pathway for basement fires to extend to upper floors.

What tactical approach is required when a fire involves continuous wooden front porch roofs on a row house block?

A coordinated blitz attack deploying master streams or handheld lines ($2\frac{1}{2}\text{-inch}$ or $1\frac{3}{4}\text{-inch}$) positioned at each end of the porch roof run to stop the lateral spread across adjoining properties.

What does persistent smoke emitting from sheet metal front cornices across multiple row houses indicate?

Non-fire-stopped, interconnected cornices allowing fire spread; if smoke fails to clear after rooftop ventilation, it indicates fire has entered a common cockloft or penetrated adjacent properties.

How can fire spread horizontally between row houses through a common masonry party wall?

Wooden floor and roof joists embedded in the party wall often abut joists from the adjoining building, permitting fire extension across properties via conduction.

What is the standard portable ladder placement strategy for the rear of row houses and town houses?

Place one ground ladder in the open light and air shaft long enough to reach the roof and top-floor windows, along with two $16\text{-foot}$ portable ladders to access the stepped-back rear roof levels.