FFP COLLAPSE

Introduction to Structural Collapse Operations

• Definition of Structural Collapse: Structural Collapse is defined as any incident where a building or portion of a building, including walls, floors, ceilings, partitions, or structures such as bridges, scaffolds, signs, construction sites, banners, or other items have collapsed or are in danger of collapsing.
• Nature of the Incident: These operations are among the most difficult and dangerous encountered by firefighters. First arriving units may encounter clouds of dust and smoke, large areas covered in debris (including streets and automobiles), and individuals who are injured, disoriented, or trapped in rubble.
• Command Jurisdiction: According to the Citywide Incident Management System (CIMS), structural collapse is a single command event. The FDNY is designated as the Incident Commander (IC) for collapse operations.
• Authority and Competency: Search and rescue is a core competency of the FDNY. This gives the Department the authority to direct search and rescue operations. All other city agencies, including the Police Department (NYPD) and Buildings Department (DOB), operate under the direction of the FDNY during a structural collapse rescue operation.
• Incident Command System (ICS): The IC will utilize the ICS to ensure a controlled and coordinated interagency operation.
• Knowledge Requirement: All FDNY Chiefs, Company Officers, Firefighters, and EMS personnel must be knowledgeable of the collapse rescue plan due to the high level of accountability associated with these responsibilities.

Causes and Indicators of Structural Collapse

• Primary Causes of Collapse:     * Fire/destruction of wood, heating of cast iron, or unprotected steel.     * Water main breaks.     * Natural causes: earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, heavy snow.     * Explosions: explosives, fuels, backdrafts.     * Collision impact.     * Vibrations and impact loads.     * Overload on floors and/or roofs; expansion of water-absorbent stock.     * Structural fatigue or old age.     * Faulty construction, improper alterations, or nearby excavations.     * Cutting or removal of load-bearing elements.
• Indicators and Signs of Impending Collapse:     * Prolonged burning for the class of construction.     * Heavy floor loading or unsupported walls.     * Cracks, sagging, or bulging walls.     * Cracking or groaning noises indicating strain on structural members.     * Rumbling noises or heavy puffs of smoke.     * Walls leaking smoke or water.     * Soft or spongy feeling while walking on a floor or roof.     * Walls or columns out of plumb.     * Plaster sliding off walls, windows cracking, or doors swinging open/closed (indicating wall movement).     * Clean wood at beam ends, indicating roof or floor pulling away from walls.

Incident Management and Interagency Coordination

• Initial Response: Both Fire and Police Departments dispatch resources. The first arriving resources capable of performing rescue will initiate life safety operations. Transition of Command will not disrupt in-progress life safety operations.
• Initial Incident Commander: The first arriving FDNY Fire Officer has prime responsibility for rescue activities and assumes the role of IC for structural collapses producing casualties or threatening public safety. This role is maintained until relieved by a superior Fire Officer.
• Post-Rescue Jurisdiction: Once all persons are rescued/removed and public safety threats are stabilized, jurisdiction shifts to the Department of Buildings (DOB) or the New York State Department of Labor (for sites under construction/demolition).
• Restoration and Recovery: New York City Emergency Management (NYCEM) coordinates recovery efforts after the IC determines areas are safe for other agency personnel.
• Preservation of Scene: The scene must not be indiscriminately damaged or disturbed after rescue, as DOB and OSHA must determine the cause and compliance with regulations. Police may be requested to provide site security.

Fire Department Objectives at Collapse Incidents

• Control the situation by extinguishing any fire.
• Conduct comprehensive searches.
• Locate and mitigate all active hazards.
• Install appropriate protective measures, such as shoring.
• Remove trapped victims.
• Triage, treat, and transport victims to medical facilities.

First Arriving Units: General Considerations and Size-Up

• Size-Up Factors:     * Building Information: Address/CIDS, occupancy, construction type.     * Collapse Area: Stability, size, floors involved, interior vs. exterior.     * Life Hazard: Occupancy/time of day, trapped/missing persons, resources on scene.     * Utilities: Gas leaks, electrical shorts, water main breaks.     * Fire Status: Extent and hazards.
• Determinations based on Size-Up:     * Apparatus placement and street management.     * Designation of initial staging areas.     * Identification of the Incident Command Post (ICP) location.
• Dispatch Notifications:     * Address and nature of the incident.     * Need for additional FDNY units or outside agency resources.     * Transmission of Signal 10-60 (Major Emergency Response) with appropriate codes.     * Transmission of additional alarms if conditions warrant.     * Location of the ICP for responding Fire, EMS, and PD supervisors.
• Special Calls: At least one tower ladder shall be special called to every major collapse if none were assigned on the initial alarm.

Essential Safety Considerations

• Safety Priority: Safety at the scene is the most important consideration during collapse operations.
• Hazard Identification: Identify and immediately report structural defects that could lead to secondary collapse. Isolate these areas with barrier tape.
• Danger Zones: Do not enter danger zones except to save a life.
• Apparatus Placement: Position apparatus outside potential collapse zones.
• Access Control: Establish control points to regulate entry/exit from the control zone.
• Escape Provisions: Secure doors, stairways, ladders, and ramps to ensure rapid escape paths.
• Environmental Monitoring: At all explosions and major collapses, SOC Units shall monitor for radiological/chemical agents.
• Injury Prevention Steps:     * Stretch hoselines to protect the entire collapse area.     * Stretch a $3\frac{1}{2}$ inch hoseline for tower ladder use.     * Control utilities by shutting main building service entrance controls.     * Remove lightly buried victims and deliver them to the Medical Group.     * Examine premises for hazardous occupancies or processes.

Potential Technical Hazards

• Secondary Collapse: Instability of adjoining buildings.
• Electrical Hazards: Downed wires energizing conduits, plumbing, or metal structural members.
• Gas Leaks: Broken pipes causing fire or explosion risk.
• Water Main Breaks: Risks include electrical shock, victim drowning, and weight-induced secondary collapse.
• Hazardous Materials: Dust (concrete dust is corrosive/irritant), asbestos, bloodborne pathogens (BBP), flammables, corrosives, or oxidizers.
• Terrorism: Potential for secondary devices.
• Environmental/Human Factors: Rescuer fatigue and adverse weather (high winds, heavy rain/snow).

Hazard Assessment Guidelines

• Member Alertness: All members must look for signs of hazardous substances.
• Training Levels: Personnel operate only to their training level.
• Hazardous Materials Actions:     * Confirm site control.     * Assign a company for health/safety hazard assessment.     * Assign identification/control to the first Haz-Mat Technician Engine (responds on 10-60).     * Special call Haz-Mat Company 1 (responds on 10-60).     * Determine if operations must switch to defensive.
• Monitoring: Voids and below-grade areas must be monitored for flammable gases, $CO$, and oxygen levels before entry. Explosions are treated as "dirty-bomb" sites until cleared.

Risk vs. Benefit Analysis

• Safety must be evaluated before complicated rescues.
• Initial actions prioritize removing able-bodied (ambulatory) and surface/lightly buried persons.
• Re-evaluate risk/benefit throughout the life of the incident.

Street Coordination and Apparatus Positioning

• General Rule: Position units outside the collapse zone. Avoid blocking streets with nonessential units.
• Engine Company Placement:     * First and second engines: Take separate hydrants outside the block on separate mains. Prepare to supply handlines and tower ladder streams.     * Third and fourth engines: Take similar positions at the rear of the structure.     * Second alarm engines: Use two to seal ends of the street; chauffeurs must remain in cabs.
• Ladder Company Placement:     * Tower Ladders: Placed in front of the structure outside the danger zone. Initially, only one tower ladder should be in front unless needed elsewhere.     * Aerial Ladders: Kept in secondary staging unless needed for specific rescue.
• Specialized Units: Rescue companies and collapse units should be outside the danger zone but as close as possible for tool access.
• Ambulance Placement: Visible but out of the way of fire operations. First arriving units stay close for triage; others stage for egress.
• Heavy Equipment Access: Maintain wide access paths for cranes, front-end loaders, and dump trucks.
• Tow Trucks: Request PD tow trucks to remove vehicles impeding operations; stage them several blocks away.

Incident Commander Functional Responsibilities

• Establish Command: Evaluation of ICP, ensuring it is visible, accessible, and outside the collapse zone.
• Command Channel: Establish Channel 2 for effective communication.
• Staging Management: Reevaluate initial staging and assign a Battalion Chief (BC) as Staging Area Manager.
• Site Survey: Eliminate vibrations by shutting down trains, heavy traffic (buses/trucks), and construction equipment.
• Witness Interviews: Use the Collapse Survivor Interview Form.
• Law Enforcement Liaison: Request assistance for crowd control, frozen zones, and force protection.
• Debris Area: Designate a paved area for debris examination to ensure no remains or evidence are lost.

Duties of First Alarm Engine Companies

• Priorities:     1. Extinguish active fire in buildings and debris.     2. Protect exposures.     3. Extinguish burning vehicles.     4. Stretch precautionary $2\frac{1}{2}$ inch lines to cover the operation.     5. Stretch $3\frac{1}{2}$ inch line to supply the first tower ladder.
• Water Supply Management: Coordinate with the first ladder company. If necessary, take a position in the block for master stream use.
• Secondary Blasts: At suspected terrorist events, position lines between apparatus or shielding to protect against secondary blasts.

Duties of First Alarm Ladder Companies

• First Arriving Ladder:     * Perform Scene Survey and Hazard Assessment.     * Protect members from secondary collapse using hazard tape, tie-backs, or cribbing.     * Remove Surface Victims to a Casualty Collection Point (CCP).     * Perform Preliminary Void Search: Visual search of accessible voids; call and listen. Do NOT cut or remove load-bearing members.
• Second Arriving Ladder:     * Priority: Control gas, electric, and water services.     * Utility Actions: Shut main building shut-offs or curb valves for gas, main disconnects for electric, and main shut-offs for water.
• Tower Ladder Operations:     * Provide large caliber streams for fire protection.     * Transport heavy tools.     * Act as work platforms for shoring or breaching.     * Provide close-up structural monitoring.

Duties of EMS and Medical Personnel

• Technician Tasks: First arriving unit technician performs triage until relieved.
• Driver Tasks: Responsible for all radio communications.
• PPE Ensemble: Helmet, Bunker-style coat/pants, gloves, N95 respirator, goggles, and APR mask as directed.
• EMS Officer Responsibilities:     * Assume command of the Medical Group.     * Emphasize early Advanced Life Support (ALS) access.     * Ensure decontamination.     * Communicate with Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) for hospital notifications.
• Rescue Paramedics:     * Trained for crush syndrome and airway management.     * Coordinate with the Rescue Group Supervisor.     * Administer intravenous therapy and monitoring as soon as patient is accessible and area is safe.

Major Emergency Response: Signal 10-60

• Criteria: Transmitted for collapse conditions requiring extensive rescue or search.
• 10-60 Code 1: Assigns an Air Recon Chief. Transmitted for major emergencies requiring specific task forces.
• Collapse Rescue Task Force (CRTF) Components:     * 1 Rescue Company