DOU. FBI 1.8: F51/2/ student NFA-SM-FRAS December 15, 1983 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH STUDENT MANUAL NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN STACKS National Emergency Training Center National Fire Academy Fire Risk Analysis: A Systems Approach JAN 2 4 .?'*»*TY m AT OF t '"""Z&gg Louis O. Giuffrida, Director Fred J. Villella, Associate Director Training and Fire Programs I FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH 'KDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY FOREWORD The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was established in 1979 and is now directed by The Honor- able Louis 0. Guiffrida. FEMA's mission is to focus federal effort on preparedness, mitigation, and re- sponse to national emergencies encompassing the full range of natural and manmade disasters. FEMA's educational center, the National Emergency Train- ing Center in Emmitsburg, Maryland, includes the Nation- al Fire Academy, United States Fire Administration, and the Emergency Management Institute. This center is headed by The Honorable Fred J. Villella, Associate Director of FEMA for Training and Fire Programs. To achieve the Academy's legislated mandate to advance the professional development of fire service personnel, the Field Programs Division has developed an effective progran linkage with established fire education systems that exist at the state and local level. It is the responsibility of this division to support and strengthen tuese delivery systems. The National Fire Academy field courses have been sponsored by state training systems in every state. Fire Risk Analysis: A Systems Approach is a specialized course dealing with analyzing a community's fire risk •and its protection capability. The course intends to help a community determine its level of acceptable risk and to help the community identify ways to minimize that risk. The course references. N.F.P.A. Standard 1031 . The course seeks, within the 12-hour format, to provide the student with a working knowledge of risk estimation and protection determination that will be helpful at a local level. The staff of the Training and Fire Programs Directorate is proud to join with state and local fire agencies in providing educational opportunities to the members of the nation's fire and rescue services. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2012 with funding from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign http://archive.org/details/fireriskanalysi8315nati FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The preparation of this course became possible through the assistance, cooperation, and generous sharing of time and ideas by many people. I wish to acknowledge all of trie following persons who and organizations that had a role in the development of this course. This course is based on materials and concepts developed by the United States Fire Administration Office of Public Education (formerly the National Fire Prevention and Control Administration). Joseph L. Donovan, Superintendent of the National Fire Academy; J. Faherty Casey, Deputy Superintendent, Field Programs Division, National Fire Academy; and Gerry N. Bassett, Acting Director, Materials Development Division, National Fire Academy. Their support, inter- est, and guidance made the effort possible. Karen R. Kent of Requisite, Inc., for invaluable help in assisting in the design of the course and in track- ing, editing and formatting the materials for the two manuals . Byron Ghaney, "Chief, Palm Springs, CA; Gordon Routley, Special Assistant to the .Chief, Phoenix, AZ ; Larry Schneider, Captain, Washington DC Fire Training Academy; and Dick Small, Pioneer Pacific Inc.; for their expert assistance in suggesting the course content and their skills in writing the course materials. James Ahern, Donald Begg, Rick Kemenyas , Jack Price Sr., and Rosie Ott for their cooperation, creativity and excellent work in producing the media package. Rae Nacke, Anne Gettig, and Beverly Day of the Energy, Management, and Marketing Division, IMR Corporation, Falls Church, Virginia, for their excellent editorial and production support services in preparing the final document. Dr. Harry Hickey, University of Maryland, College Park, MD; Richard Ulrich, Montgomery Community College, Rock- ville, MD; George Kayden, Bloomington, UN; George Oster, Iowa State Extension Department, Ames IA; and Fred Brad- ley of Gage Babcock and Associates, Reston, VA; for their careful reviews of the Phase I and II materials. Romey W. Brooks NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY Pr ° JeCt ManaRer NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword . Acknowledgements Table of Contents Schedule . N.F.P.A. Standards 1 iii v vii ix Unit I: Introduction Objective. ....... 1-1 Unit II: The Community Fire Protection System Objective and Text . . . . . .2-1 Student Activities ...... 2-13 Note- taking Guide . . . . . .2-15 Unit III: The Community At Risk Objective and Text ...... 3-1 Student Activities ..... 3-31 Note-taking Guide . . . . . 3-85 Unit IV: Fire Suppression in the Community Objective and Text . . . . . .4-1 Student Activities ..... 4-17 Note-taking Guide ..... 4-71 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit V: Unprotected Risk Objective and Text ...... 5-1 Student Activities ...... 5-7 Note-taking Guide ...... 5-9 Unit VI: The Community Experience Objective and Text ...... 6-1 Student Activities ...... 6-9 Note- taking Guide ..... 6-15 Appendix A : Forms Used in the Course Appendix B: Bibliography NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Schedule Day I A.M. 9:00 Unit I: Introduction 3/4 hr. 9:45 Unit II: The Community Fire 1 1/4 hrs. Protection System 11:00 Unit III: The Community at Risk 5 hrs. P.M. Lunch 1:00 Unit III (continued) 5:00 End of first day Day I_I A.M. 8:30 Unit IV: Fire Suppression in 3 hrs. the Community P.M. Lunch 1:00 Unit V; Unprotected Risk 1 hr. 2:00 Unit VI: The Community 1 1/2 hr* Experience 3:30 Course Examination 4:00 Evaluation and Wrap-Up NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER V11 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH N.F.P.A. Standards Generically , the whole course references Fire Officer VI, 7-1 and 7-4.1 . Specific units reference selected portions of the Standards as follows: Unit II Fire Officer I: 2-5.1 2-5.2 2-6.2 2-6.3 Fire Officer III: 4-2.6 4-9.2 Fire Officer V: 6-3.5 Fire Officer VI: 7-2.1 Unit III. .... Fire Officer I: 2-10.11 Fire Officer III: 4-2.4 4-3.1 4-3.2 4-3.3 Unit IV Fire Officer I: 2-10.11 Fire Officer III: 4-2.4 . 4-4.7 Unit VI. Fire Officer V: 6-2.3 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 1X FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH UNIT I INTRODUCTION NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit I: Introduce ion Obj ective The participants will formulate their expectations of the course following an overview presented by the ins tructor . NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 1-1 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH UNIT II THE COMMUNITY FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEM NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit II The Community Fire Protection System Obj ect ive The participants will be able to list the major elements of a community fire protection system and describe the interrelationships of these elements. Systems A system is a set of interacting elements that Defined together form an integrated whole. The elements are organized to accomplish a purpose or a goal. We can think of all kinds of systems: political, transportation, computer, etc. In this course, each unit is intended to provide you with infor- mation which builds upon and is interrelated to previous units. The course tries to show you a systems approach to fire protection. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 2-1 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH The Hunan A simple but appropriate example of a system is Body As A the human body. The interacting elements--di- System gestive tract, lungs, heart, etc. --are elements that interact and are dependent on the others for total integration of the whole. The key point to keep in mind as we move toward develop- ing the community fire protection system concept is that each element of a system is important and has some relationship to the other parts of the system. In a fire protection system, some parts of the the system may have greater impact than other parts, yet to be fully and totally effective, each part is important and each must function for the accomplishment of the total fire protection effort. The Another example of a system is the automobile. Automobile Here again, each element of the system has some As A System relationship to the other parts. The fuel which explodes forces the pistons to operate. This in turn moves the crankshaft. Thus, fuel is a crit- ical element without which the system will not operate at all. Yet, there are different grades of fuel which may operate the system, but some will cause the system to be less than effective. We can relate this fuel grade example to the community fire protection system,' in that, if some departments or agencies do not accept or recognize their system responsibilities, it will not operate as effectively as it could. Today's fire managers need to have what can be called a helicopter perspective, i.e., the abil- ity to rise above the rest and see the big pic- ture. Every community has a fire protection system in place. . .right now. Often the elements, depart- ments or agencies of that system have either been ill defined or not defined at all. Fire Too often, fire protection is viewed to be fire Protection suppression only. "Fire protection" is used in Defined a much larger context than fire suppression. Fire protection includes all of the elements that are involved in maintaining loss of life, NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 2 _2 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH property and community consequence of fire to some acceptable level the community desires or can afford. Some of these broader aspects in- clude : Prevention: Code development and enforcement Public education/awareness Arson investigation Control: Fire resistive contruction Hazard isolation Suppression: Automatic suppression systems Detection and alarm devices Manual suppression systems Investigation Acceptable Unless a community has specifically identified Levels its acceptable levels of loss and service, it can be assumed that the historical loss and service levels are, in fact, acceptable. As the histori- cal levels of loss and service are more specifi- cally defined and made clear to to the community, there may emerge a desire to change the acceptable loss and service levels. Community Traditionally, fire managers have taken too great Fire a burden of fire protection upon themselves and Protection have not considered fire protection as a ' system . System In a good fire protection system, each element is aware that it is a part of the system and accepts its responsibility. A fire department cannot alone provide fire protection. It is time for this burden to be shared with others in the system who also have some fire protection responsibilities. With this definition of a system in mind, let's begin to identify those interrelated elements that make up a community's fire protection sys- tem. Most communities will have a number of the same elements in their systems. Some jurisdic- tions, however, will have some elements that are unique to that community. Thus, each community's fire protection system is tailored to that com- munity. Fire In most jurisdictions, the fire chief is consid- Manager ered to be the fire manager. This is the posi- Defined tion that generally administers the fire pro- tection affairs of the community. However, in NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 2-3 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH this course, the term "fire manager" is intended to include not only the fire chief, but all staff or department positions with fire protection re- spons ibility. The fire manager's role in the community fire protection system is to be the coordinator of the system. There are a number of tasks that are associated with this role. Some of the key ones are: 1) to identify all elements of the system; 2) to help each element clarify its fire protec- tion responsibilities; and 3) to cause each ele- ment to agree to and commit to fulfill its system responsibilities. As a fire manager, you are likely to be the one best able to help other departments and agencies define and clarify their fire protection respon- sibilities. It is important that, in coordinating the system, the fire manager maintains a humanis- tic and tactful approach. As a fire manager, you would likely resent another department telling you what your department's responsibility is in assisting them . To be an effective systems co- ordinator requires ,patience and tact. One One possible approach calls for fire managers to Possible list those departments and agencies in their corn- Approach munity that have a role in fire protection. Once each agency is identified, fire managers can then spell out the fire protection responsibilities for each of the agencies. Each agency is then advised what is being done, then asked to review the responsibility list and modify It - as neces- sary. Fire managers should offer to meet with each department to clarify responsibilities that have been identified. Each agency should be asked to respond in writing when they approve their responsibility areas. This will help to gain commitment on the part of the department or agency. This cooperative approach is by far the best; however, under certain circumstances the fire manager may be forced to bring the issue to the administrative head of the organization (city manager, county manager, etc.) or directly to the legislative body for some review and policy direction. Remember, though, it is not possible to legislate cooperation. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 2 _4 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Uestville Throughout this course, we will be referring to Fire the hypothetical community of Westville. Follow- Protection ing is an example of the Uestville fire protec- System tion system and the fire protection responsibil- ities of each part of the system. Keep in mind that some of these departments or agencies will be the same in your community. However, do not overlook specific agencies that need to be a part of your unique system. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 2-5 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH WESTVILLE COMMUNITY FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEM THE GOALS OF THIS FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEM ARE To prevent and/o damage due to fi through the effo making up the fi duction of Life plished through resistance and d development of f tenance of an ad fire suppression r limit life loss and property re. This will be accomplished rts of those people and agencies re protection system. This re- and property loss will be accom- code enforcement relative to fire ensity of structures, through the ire safety attitudes and main- equate, well- trained and equipped force. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 2-6 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEM FOR WESTVILLE Fire protection for the City of Westville is not the sole funct ion of the fire department, rather it is a system made up of many city departments and agencies. The fire protection role of each city department and agency includes the following responsibilities : 1 . City Council/Manager: a. Receives recommendations from the fire department and determines the levels of services and resources to be provided. b. Allocates resources of the total city delivery systems and determines municipal priorities. 2 . Fire Department : a. Provides information and recommendations to the city legislators for their deci- sion. b. Within budget limitations, maintains a well- trained and equipped fire suppres- sion force for fire control. c. Coordinates and is responsible for public fire prevention education programs. d. Coordinates the community fire protection system. e. Provides periodic life safety and fire hazard inspection, correction and en- forcement program. f. Coordinates and provides community emer- gency medical service (EMS) program. g. Conducts fire cause and arson investiga- tions. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 2-7 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH h. Recommends ordinances and fire safety laws to minimize loss of life and property by uncontrolled fire. Maintains latest fire prevention codes. i. Provides review of plans for new construc- tion, fire-resistive construction, sepa- rations, built-in fire protection, hy- drant layouts, apparatus access. 3 . Municipal Airport : a. Within budget limitations, maintains a well-trained and equipped crash/fire/res- cue force for aircraft emergencies. b. During those hours when the airport is closed to commercial aircraft, provides personnel to implement a second squad for suppression operations. c. Provides specialized apparatus with light water and dry chemical capability, prox- imity suits, and a 5,000-gallon tanker. 4 . Building Department : a. Enforces minimum building, plumbing and electrical codes. Through the Uniform Building Code, a certain level of fire resistance is built into structures at the time of construction. The primary elements of this fire resistance are life safety, structural stability and reduc- tion of fire hazard of built-in systems in structures. b. Classifies occupancies and their required types of construction to assure that the structure meets the fire and life safety needs of the occupancy. c. Issues occupancy permits which control changing occupancies to assure that the structure meets the fire protection and life safety needs each time the occupancy changes . d. Coordinates with emergency services on assignment of street numbers, names and 2-8 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH requirements of posting of street num- bers. Approval of numbering systems for multiple-occupancy developments . e. Provides rehabilitation program which serves to correct structural deficiencies, including fire protection problems in older structures. f. Maintains up-to-date building codes. 5 . Engineering Department : a. Prepares preliminary layout of fire hy- drants and water mains for new street development based on fire department recommendations . b. Considers fire apparatus access (street width, turning radius, cul-de-sacs) dur- ing street development, based on recom- mendations . c. Checks water system plans, prepared by private consulting engineers, for con- formance to fire department regulations. d. Provides fire department with utility maps for use in prefire planning and emergency operations. -Sewer System Maps -Storm Drain System Maps e. Maintains up-to-date city boundary and street system maps. Water Agency : a. Maintains water supply for use in fire suppression (fire flows). b. Performs periodic inspections of hydrant gate valves. c. Assures that valving in mains is maintained so that maximum fire flow is available. d. Maintains and repairs fire hydrants, in- cluding flushing, painting and flow testing. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 2-9 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH e. Sends a duty man to greater alarm fires to assist in water supply problems. f. Maintains records needed to meet insurance grading requirements. g. Keeps fire Department informed of hydrants and water mains which are "out of service." h. Provides connections for private fire protections systems. Inspects and main- tains street valves to assure uninter- rupted water supply. i. Provides Fire Department with utility maps for use in prefire planning and emergency operations . -Water System Maps -Water System Pressure Zone Maps 7 . Planning Department, Advance Planning, Zoning a. Provides information through which future fire protection needs can be determined. b. Controls design of developments which affect: -Access to buildings -Separation of buildings -Open spaces (green areas) which serve as fire breaks c. Considers fire protection resource needs in determining density and types of de- velopments . d. Develops conservation and open space ele- ments to identify potential hazard areas. 8 . Police Department : a. Provides traffic and crowd control at emergencies . b. Reports fire and fire hazards during patrols. 2-10 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH c. Enforces "NO PARKING" ordinances which ob- struct fire protection facilities (fire hydrants, fire department connections, access routes (public property)). d. Assists fire prevention division with fire investigations, especially the apprehension and prosecution of incendiary fire setters. Assists in handling and storing of evidence. e. Enforces trespassing laws in designated fire areas. f. Aero Squadron: 1 . Provides air reconnaissance of moun- tain/canyon areas during brush fire operations . 2. Provides patrol of canyons when closed to public due to areas being declared a high fire-hazard area. g. Communications Center: 1 . Receives calls for service and dis- patches appropriate companies. 2. Coordinates purchase, testing, and repair of all fire department communi- cations equipment and maintains' fire department communications/alarm records records . 9 . Central Services : a. Reproduces written fire safety materials. b. Prepares and prints fire prevention infor- mation. c. Prepares, does layout, and reproduces reports . d. Prepares transparencies and other visual aids . 10. General Services: a. Shop Division NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 2-11 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH 1 . Performs preventive maintenance. 2. Performs emergency Repairs. 3. Performs refueling and repairs at emergency scene. 4. Performs fabrication of equipment. 5. Performs repair and maintenance of power tools. 6. Assists in preparation of apparatus and vehicle specifications. 7. Trains personnel on proper operation of apparatus and equipment. b. Building Maintenance: 1 . Performs maintenance of emergency generators . 2. Performs maintenance on fire depart- ment facilities. 3. Provides advice on preventive main- tenance program. 1 1 . Private Developers : a. Provide adequate set of new construction plans for fire department review to insure all fire and life safety codes are being met. Installs fire protections systems as required. b. Cooperate with fire department in meet- ing local code requirements to minimize long-range effect of new construction. c. Provide 8 X 10 readable plot plans on larger developments for fire department response books. Summary Providing fire protection service involves many departments and agencies. Every community has a fire protection system, although often the players in the system have not been defined. The modern fire manager is responsible for clarifying and coordinating the community fire protection system. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 2 _ 12 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INDIVIDUALIZED ACTIVITY Name of jurisdiction: Fire protection for a community is not the sole function or responsibility of the fire department. Rather, it is a system made up of many departments and agencies. Write a list of the departments or agencies involved in your community fire protection system. 1. 9. 2. 10 1 1 4. 12 13 14 7. 15 On the next page, for each of the departments or agencies you indicated above, write two or three fire protection responsibilities you think belong to that group. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 2-13 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Agency or Departmental Fire Protection Duties 9. 2. 10 3. 11 5. 13 6. 14 15 16. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 2-14 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit II: The Community Fire Protection System I. Systems A. Definition B. Purpose C. Benefits NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 2 ~ 15 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH D. System operation L. Hot well defined 2 . Elements not always evident 3. Change possible 4. Systems everywhere E. Fire protection as a system 1. Purpose NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 2 _ 16 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH 2. Broader picture II. Community Fire Protection A. Definition R. Considerations NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH 1. Common elements 2. Variations C. Levels of protection NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 2 _ 18 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH IV. The fire manager A. System coordinator Part of management team NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 2-19 FIRE RiGK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH UNIT III THE COMMUNITY AT RISK NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit: III: The Community at Risk Obj ective The participants will be able to define fire risk, class- ify different types of risk and estimate fire risk using specific measurement tools. I. Background Loss Potential loss measures both the likelihood that an unwanted event will occur and the magnitude of the loss when it does occur. While we cannot predict when a loss-producing event will occur, we can, with some degree of certainty, say that it is more likely to occur, in one building than in another. The magnitude of the loss is pre- dictable if we will just take the time to analyze the probable • events sequence and evaluate every- thing which can be lost or damaged during the incident . All loss sustained will be within three categor- ies: life, property and community consequences. Determining the potential for loss in each ' of these categories is the first step toward under- standing the community's fire risk problem. Target Fire departments have long known which buildings Hazard are the most likely to sustain a major loss. These target hazards have, in the past, been de- fined rather loosely and casually as "buildings having a high life or dollar loss potential," or as "any building with a high potential for having a fire." Let's refine these somewhat and say that a target hazard is "any building or area which presents an undue challenge or risk to the fire suppression force or community as a whole." This challenge or risk is manifested by: 1. The potential for life loss; 2. The impact of dollar loss; or 3. A loss of community pride or esteem through NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3_1 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH the loss of an important historical, religious or political shrine. This challenge or risk may be due to: 1 . Danger to the surrounding areas from escaping dangerous products or contaminated run-off water; 2. The quantity of resources (men, equipment, water, etc.) needed to control the incident; 3. An extreme difficulty in mounting an attack due to problems of access, fuel loading, occupancy, construction or other factors; or 4. The importance of the function to the community (a vital wooden railroad bridge, the building- housing the town's water pump or a large tele- phone exchange. Geographic areas with no set boundaries can also be evaluated as target hazards. Highway intersec- tions, railroad grade crossings, and sections of highway with limited access and/or water supply problems are some of the more common examples. Risk A simple definition of risk is the potential vulnerability to fire with the possibility of loss, injury, disadvantage or destruction. Risk is measured by determining what can be destroyed by fire and the consequences of that fire in terms of property, life, and community loss. To deter- mine fire risk, the questions "who, what, where, why, and when" need to be answered. Who and What In considering the risk presented by a target hazard, the twin questions of who and what define the extent of the problem. Is the problem, in terms of fire or escaping products, going to endanger anyone or anything outside of the imme- diate area? This will determine the physical limits of the problem NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-2 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Where In order to answer "where," two different answers are required which go back to a most basic under- standing of the meaning of target hazard. We want to know where the fire will, or is most like- ly to occur. We also need to judge where the im- pact of the incident will be felt. Will it be lives, money or pride? The fact that a fire oc- curs is evidence that the fire protection system is not working as well as it should. When a fire department publishes its annual statistics, it in- dicates by its number of runs and amount of fire loss how well it is doing its primary job of pre- venting fire. As firefighters, we generally take pride (incorrectly) in the number of responses we make although we are embarrassed (justifiably) by the mounting fire loss. Wh The "why" answer should also cover two facets of the problem. The first, and most important is why did the fire occur in the first place? This will not be covered in this course but can be answered in terms of public fire education and adequate fire codes. The second phase of the answer tells us why the fire suppression -forces will have, or did have, problems controlling the situation. This will be in terms of adequacy of codes and their enforcement and the overall ability and preparedness of the fire suppression forces to handle the situation. When The last question of "when" is the one for which we have no answer. As mentioned earlier, we cannot predict when a fire will occur. We can only say that it is more likely to occur in one building than in another. We also know that our skill at making those predictions is not what we would like it to be. The PROBABILITY OF THE EVENT times the PREDICTABLE OUTCOME equals RISK to life, property, community NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-3 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Risk Risk can be modified by several factors: lodif iers • Condi tion of building , i.e., age, housekeeping, maintenance . • Fixed protection systems, i.e., detection, alarm, standpipes. • Construction factors, i.e., height, access barriers (roads, windowless building), air handling systems, vertical openings. • Code enforcement, i.e., fire education and training brigades, fire safety awareness. Some of these are risk increasers while others act as risk reducers. The fine tuning they give the overall risk evaluation is important, if for no other reason because it forces us to consider these factors in an analytical way and not just as items on a check list. Fire Inherent in the measurement of risk is the impli- Fighting cation that it can be moderated by outside inter- Systems vention. In the event of fire, this is by the fire department and/or fixed protection systems within the building. Systems which can be in- stalled within buildings can be classified as either active or passive systems. Most active systems (sprinkler or other fire extinguishing systems) also act as passive (detection) systems. When the system is activated, an alarm is trans- mitted so additional help can be obtained. A pas- sive system, on the other hand, merely sends noti- fication of a fire. While this ensures an early response by the fire fighting forces, it takes no part in the control of the problem. There is one passive system which does not detect the fire but which can aid in its control. Stand- pipe systems reduce the time and effort required to get lines into position, thereby reducing fatigue on the part of the firefighters and allowing an attack to be made at the earliest possible moment. It must be remembered that detection and standpipe systems are not considered to be risk reducers since they take no active part in the actual extinguishment process, though they can be expected to reduce loss. As we shall see,- sprinkler systems are given credit 3-4 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH for actually reducing the anount of risk within a building. The total fire fighting capability which can be brought to bear on a fire is the sum of the fire department's total effort and the sprinkler sys- tem. The fixed system, while always in place and fast acting, is "fixed" in as much as its total capability is limited and it cannot be moved. The fire department, on the other hand, can increase its capability through call-backs or requests for mutual aid. It also has the ability to reposition itself or adjust its method and intensity of attack. However, even, with this flexibility, the fire department is limited by its water supply, manpower and the total resources it has or can draw upon. Fire The thought of going out and making a pre-in- Manage- cident assessment of every building in town is ment enough to make the staff lose its enthusiasm for Areas the task. While it may be a laudable goal, it is not a practical first step and is not necessary. If a sufficient number of representative buildings can be identified, the desired information can be gained with minimal effort. This will also reduce the paperwork to a level which will not overload the system and cause its failure. The- question is: How do we find our representative samples? The answer is found in Fire Management Areas also known as FllA's. Fire management areas are artificial subdivisions of the area for which the fire department is charged with providing protection. These divi- sions may be based on any parameters the fire department wishes to choose. Some of the most common are grid systems, geographic boundaries, response areas, land use, environmental barriers, population density, construction and previous fire experience. While each has advantages and disad- vantages, the final decision will have to reflect what is best for the fire department and the com- munity. Large urban departments may also elect to choose fire response areas, while smaller de- partments protecting large areas may choose land use. In some situations, geographic boundaries may be chosen. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-5 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH If rigid divisions or boundaries do not already exist, or the existing ones are not practical or desirable to use, a grid system would be the logical choice. The use of a grid insures that all fire management areas are a standard size which can easily be managed by the fire depart- ment . Gridding Since a grid system is completely arbitrary, it does have some important features. It is impos- sible, using any of the other parameters, to pro- duce areas which are consistent in size and reflect a desired criteria. Also, as time passes, the conditions within areas (population density, construction type, etc.) change. Once the condi- tions within the area have changed, it no longer is a valid model of the criteria it is supposed to reflect. Once the areas are defined, the responsibility for gathering data and conducting the risk assess- ments within each area must be assigned. In some cases, a single area' will be assigned its own team. In others, one team will be responsible for sev- eral areas. The data required from each area in- cludes average available fire flow, response time to and within the area, construction and occupancy types, previous fire loss statistics and other factors which may help define the problem and sug- gest solutions. Identify All potential target hazards must be identified Target within each F.tl.A. based on previously selected Hazards criteria (the definition of target hazard). The most severe are selected for a pre-incident risk analysis. In most cases, three to five target hazards per fire management area are enough to gain an understanding of the degree and type of risk which exists in each F.tl.A. and, when combined with the results from the other areas, will give the same information for the community as a whole. If more than five hazards need to be addressed in any one F.M.A. , either the selection process is not working properly or the area needs to be reduced in size. Ideally, each team will include people knowledge- able in local building codes, fire safety codes and fire suppression techniques. In this way, they NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-6 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH can contribute toward better risk interpretations. When fire suppression personnel are used to make the survey, they must be trained to recognize important life safety factors and code deviations. II. Calculating Needed Fire Flow Needed One of the most basic and useful tools available Fire to the fire manager is the needed fire flow for a Flow given building. The needed fire flow is the amount of water needed to extinguish a fire in an occupancy. In most cases , the fire flow calcu- lated is beyond that which is needed to control a fire. However, consideration is given to a mar- gin of safety which may be needed under some cir- cumstances. This flow is always given in gallons per minute and may be required for a protracted period of time. The needed fire flow allows the fire loss manager to study his resource needs in terms of manpower, water, and apparatus BEFORE THE INCIDENT. If a given volume of water is required, it is rather simple to calculate the number of men required to man the requisite number of lines of the proper size. Consider the following example: If the needed flow is 250 gpm , a minimum of three men would be needed on one 2-1/2 inch line or two men on each of two 1-1/2 inch lines. The deci- sion on maneuverability, effective reach of 2-1/2 inch lines versus 1-1/2 inch lines, time required to place in service, and other tactical considerations will have to be made based on local conditions. While figuring out the man- power needed, ventilation, search, rescue, com- mand functions, pump operations, and other ancillary functions must also be figured in. Fire Two methods will be employed for the calculation Flow of needed fire flow. These will give widely dif- Estimation ferent answers which are to be used under differ- ent conditions. The first is the basic cubic foot formula and will be used for an initial attack. The second method presupposes total in- volvement in what will become a long-term incident. The cubic foot formula is based on the ability of water to absorb heat and turn to steam. (Since NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3 _ 7 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH this information is available in more depth in other National Fire Academy courses, only an over- view will be given here.) The cubic foot capacity of the largest single area in the building is cal- culated. The number of cubic feet is then divided by 200 to obtain the total number of gallons of water needed for extinguishment. By experimenta- tion, it has been found that maximum extinguishment efficiency is gained if the water is applied at the hottest part of the area involved in no more than 30 seconds. Example If the number of cubic feet is divided by 100, the answer represents the gallon per minute flow required for 30 seconds. For example, an area of 70' x 80' x 10' = 56,000 cubic feet. When this is divided by 200, one gets 280 total gallons. If it is divided by 100, the answer is 560 gal- lons per minute for 30 seconds or 280 gallons, of water. If this rate of application (560 gpm) cannot be maintained for 30 seconds, it is very likely that the fire will not be extinguished and in fact it may become more difficult to extinguish. The water supply, supply lines, at- tack lines and manpower requirements for 560 gpm must be set up, even if the flow is only for 30 seconds. This fast-attack formula should give the fire department control of the fire. If something does not work properly and control is not gained, then the sustained attack formula must be used. Alternate The alternate formula for calculating fire flow Method is a bit more complicated, but not impossible. The step-by-step process is combined with the Fire Flow Estimate Form so that the entire guide can be copied and reused. The purpose of this guide is to provide fire pro- tection managers with a step-by-step system for calculating "Required Fire Flow" for targeted buildings or groups of buildings. Required Fire Flow is the water flow needed for fire fighting purposes to confine a major fire to a building or group of buildings. The system presented here is based upon the Insur- ance Service Office's Guide for Determination of Required Fire Flow (I.S.O.). This procedure has been simplified for field use. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY J — o NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Accurate completion of the form is essential. The following information is keyed to correspond- ing parts of the form. The "Guide For Determining Needed Fire Flow" begins on the next page. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH GUIDE FOR DETERMINING NEEDED FIRE FLOW (Use the Fire Flow Estimate Form with this Guide.) BLOCK A: BASIC INFORMATION Occupancy Name: Self-explanatory Classification: The occupancy classification should conform with the local building code. Occupancy Address: Self-explanatory. F.M.A. : The fire management area in which the occupancy is located. Calculated by: Name of person(s) calculating the fire flow. Estimated Fire Flow: Final calculated estimate. BLOCK B: TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION The following examples will help identify the various types of construction. If you are unable to determine construction type, obtain the needed information from the Fire Prevention Division or refer to N.F.P.A. 220, Standard Types of Building Construction '. Fire Resistive The structural elements in fire resistive build- ings shall be of steel, iron, concrete or masonry. Walls and permanent partitions shall be of non- combustible fire-resistive construction. Non - Combus tible All metal construction, including frame, siding and roof, or metal and masonry. Heavy Timber Heavy timber structural elements. Permanent par- titions and members of the structural frame may be of other materials, provided they have a fire resistance of not less than one hour. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-10 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Ordinary Buildings with masonry or concrete load bearing walls. Roof and floor assemblies are combustible cons truction. Wood Frame Wood frame denotes the structural frame of build- ings and does not concern itself with what is used to cover the frame on the interior or ex- terior. Mixed Any combination of construction types within, a single structure. Use the predominant construct- ion type. BLOCK C: DETERMINE EFFECTIVE FLOOR AREA Express the area of the largest floor area in square feet . Add: a) 50% of all other floor areas EXCEPT for fire resistive construction; b) 25% of the two largest successive floor areas for fire resistive construction with vertical openings; c) 50% of EIGHT (8) largest successive floors for fire resistive construction with unprotected vertical openings. Notes 1 . Buildings side by side having openings bet- ween them or separate buildings with unpro- ted connections are considered a single fire area. 2. Sections of buildings separated by standard fire walls shall be considered separate fire areas . NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-11 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH LOCK D DETERMINE BASE FIRE FLOW In Table 1 , BASE FIRE FLOW, found on the next page, locate the range within which the area (C) falls in the column corresponding to the type of construction. Read the corresponding "Base Fire Flow" in the left-hand column. If the area of the building falls in between the square feet on the table, use the higher square feet on the table. For example, a wood frame ciilding with an ef- fective area of 7,000 square feet falls between 6,200 square feet and 7,/00 square feet on the table. The Base Fire Flow will be 2,250 GPM, equivalent to 7,700 square feet. Enter the Base Fire Flow, obtained from Table 1 in the TOTALS COLUMN, line (D). There will be some exceptions, however. The base fire flow shall not exceed 8,000 GPM for wood frame or ordinary construction. 6,000 GPM for fire resistive or all metal construction. 6,000 GPM for single story building re- gardless of type of construction. BLOCK E: OCCUPANCY FACTOR ADJUSTMENT For buildings with unusually high or low fire loading credits or charges up to 25% of base fire flow may be subtracted or added. Select the adjustment for the occupancy classi- fication which mor ". closely resembles the build- ing under consideration. This block will be used to make appropriate adjustments. Calculate the adjustment. If HIGH risk add the amount to Line (D) ; if LOW risk, subtract the amount from Line (D) . Enter the new adjusted total in the TOTALS COLUMN, line (E). NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-12 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH TABLE 1 : BASE FIRE FLOW Fire Area (in square feet) for Various Construction Types Base Fire Non- Ordinary* or Wood Fire Flow Resistive Combustible Heavy Timber Frame 500 3,300 1 ,900 1 ,200 500 750 6,600 3,700 2,400 1 ,100 1 ,000 10,900 6,100 3,900 1 ,700 1 ,250 16,200 9,100 5,800 2,600 1 ,500 22,700 12,700 8,200 3,600 1 ,750 30,200 17,000 10,900 4,800 2,000 38,700 21 ,800 13,900 6,200 2,250 48,300 27,200 17,400 7,700 2,500 59,000 33,200 21 ,300 9,400 2,750 70,900 39,700 25,500 11 ,300 3,000 83,700 47,100 30,100 13,400 3,250 97,700 54,900 35,200 15,600 3,500 112,700 63,400 40,600 18,000 3,750 128,700 72,400 46,400 20,600 4,000 145,900 82,100 52,500 23,300 4,250 164,200 92,400 59,100 26,300 4,500 183,400 103,100 66,000 29,300 4,750 203,700 114,600 73,300 32,600 5,000 225,200 126,700 81 ,100 36,000 5,250 247,700 139,400 89,200 39,600 5,500 271 ,200 152,600 97,700 43,400 5,750 295,900 166,500 106,500 47,400 6,000 greater greater 115,800 51,500 6,250 125,500 55,700 6,500 135,500 60,200 6,750 145,800 64,800 7,000 156,700 69,600 7,250 167,900 74,600 7,500 179,400 79,800 7,750 191 ,400 85,100 8,000 greater greater *Fire flow not to exceed 6,000 gpm in one-story buildings not exceeding 16 feet in height. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-13 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Low Fire Load Occupancy Type Suggested Credits 1. Storage of metal products, non- - 25% combustibe goods 2. Vacant buildings - 25% 3. Office buildings - 15% 4. Hotels, motels, dormitories - 15% 5. Residential occupancies - 15% 6. Health care occupancies - 15% Ordinary Fire Load Occupancy Type Suggested Credits 1 . Stores No adjustment 2. Business/storage occupancies No adjustment High Fire Load Occupancy Type Suggested Credits 1. Storage of wood products, + 15% furniture, etc. 2. Storage of plastics, tires, + 20% flammable products 3. High piled storage (over 21 feet) + 25% BLOCK F: DETERMINE EXPOSURE ADJUSTMENT Additional water supply, expressed as a percent- age of occupancy fire flow (E) , is charged for structures exposed by the fire area. The percent- age of actual adjustment for each "face" is based upon distance and the following factors: 1. The height, area, and construction of the building(s) being exposed. 2. The separation (distance) and openings in the exposed building(s). 3. The length of exposure. 4. The provision of automatic sprinklers and/or outside sprinklers in the exposed building(s). NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3_14 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH 5. The effect of hillside locations on the pos- sible spread of fire. This is a judgment item based on separation dis- tance, length and heigth of the exposed face, type of construction and openings. A range of adjustment factors is provided. The selection of the factor to be used for each face is left to the discretion of the user, based on observed conditions . The percentage applied should reflect actual con- ditions, but not exceed the percentage listed in the guide. The total percentage of adjustment should not exceed 75%. To determine the GPM adjustment, multiply the occupancy fire flow (E) by the percent of ad- justment. Enter the result in the TOTALS COLUMN, Line (F). BLOCK G: COMPUTE ESTIMATED FIRE FLOW REQUIRED If less than 500 GPM, enter 500 GPM. If greater than 12,000 GPM, enter 12,000 GPM. If less than 2,500 GPM, round off to the nearest 250 GPM. If greater than 2,500 GPM, round off to the nearest 500 GPM. Enter this final figure in the TOTALS COLUMN, line (I). Also enter it on Line 3 of BLOCK A. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3. 15 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE FLOW ESTIMATE FORM BLOCK A: BASIC INFORMATION Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by Est. F.F. GPM BLOCK B: DETERMINE TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive heavy Timber Ordinary Masonry or Concrete Non-Combus tible Wood Frame Mixed (Use predominant type) BLOCK C: DETERMINE EFFECTIVE AREA Largest floor area (sq. ft.) Add: a) 50% of all other floor areas except for fire resistive construction; b) 25% of two largest successive floor areas for fire resistive construction with vertical separations ; c) 50% of eight largest successive floors for fire resistive construction with unprotected vertical openings. (sq. ft.) TOTALS COLUMN total sq.ft. (C) BLOCK D: DETERMINE BASE FIRE FLOW Select the correct GPM figure from Table 1 . GPM (D) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-16 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH A D C J BLOCK E: DETERMINE OCCUPANCY FACTOR ADJUSTMENT Step 1 : Select a high or low fire load factor up to 25% Step 2: Multiply (D) by this factor. Step 3: If HIGH RISK, add the amount to (D) ; if LOW RISK subtract from (D) . NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL GPM (E) A E D X J P U S S T U M R E E N T BLOCK F: DETERMINE EXPOSURE ADJUSTMENT Using the tables below, enter the separation and the adjustment for each of the building's four "faces." Separation in Feet Adjustment Range Expo- sure Sep. Feet Adj. 0-10 11 - 30 31 - 60 61 - 100 15 - 25% 10 - 20% 7-15% 5-10% North East South West Total adjust- ment (not more than 75%) Multiply (E) by this percentage. NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL GPM (F) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-17 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BLOCK G: TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW II If less than 500 GPM, enter 11 500 GPM. 11 If greater than 12,000 GPM, 11 enter 12,000 GPM. II If less than 2,500 GPM, 11 round off (H) to the nearest 11 250 GPM. 11 If greater than 2,500 GPM, II round off (H) to the nearest 11 500 GPM. TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW ROUNDED OFF = GPM (G) (ENTER TOTAL ON LINE THREE, BLOCK A) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-18 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH III. Estimating Life Risk Estimating The following information is presented in a form Life Risk that is meant to be useful to persons conducting surveys which evaluate life risk. Understanding all the factors influencing life safety in buildings is a complex study in building construction and human behavior. Yet, there is a need for a less complicated way to estimate poten- tial life loss should fire occur in target occu- pancies . It is recognized that a simple system may only bring to light potential problems and will not necessarily provide a thorough understanding of the risk or causes of the risk. If potential problems are identified, further analysis by qual- ified and competent personnel will likely be nec- essary. The following guide presents a system by which life risk estimates can be quantified. Five In this system, buildings are classified into one Levels of five potential risk levels based on key safety of Risk factors which may be incorporated into the build- ing. Once the building has been categorized into one of the five risk levels, the actual number of lives at risk from a single fire incident can be theoretically projected. While the life loss in a particular fire may be more or less, historical data from actual case studies indicates that the estimates will provide a good indication of the risk to occupants. No attempt has been made to estimate the potential life loss from fires occurring as a result of ma- jor or gross disasters such as earthquakes, plane crashes and explosions. Fire rescue and suppression capability can have a significant impact on the number of lives lost as a result of a given fire incident. However, there are many conditions that could render the fire department ineffective in terms of life loss such as delayed alarm or delayed response. Life safety is much more dependent on the charac- teristics of the building and built-in safety features than on the ability of any fire depart- ment to provide search and rescue. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-19 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Therefore, in the system suggested, the potentia risk is based upon building factors such as exi capacity, structural fire resistance, smoke cor. trol, suppression and detection systems. This information should provide fire manager with a good indication of the life risk factor which could be expected in a real fire situatic at the target hazard. This must be considered i relation to the number of occupants, whether the would be asleep or awake, their physical capabi lities and the necessary commitment of fire sup pression personnel for search and rescue. This is an attempt to give community fire pre tection managers a guide for estimating the vul nerability to loss of life in selected buila ings. It will need considerable refinement i the future as experience provides additional ir. formation for improvement of the system. I cannot substitute for professional fire protect ion engineerieng analysis and should not be use for calculating risk in health care facilitie where the physical or mental capacities of th occupants, are impaired. For health care facili ties, reference the Office of Planning and Educa tion, U.S.F.A., FEMA Guide, "Fire Safety Evalua tion System for Health Care Facilities." The "Life Risk Analysis Guide" begins on the ne> page. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-20 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH LIFE RISK ANALYSIS GUIDE STEP 1 SELECT LIFE LOSS TARGET HAZARDS In this first step, the occupancies that will be targeted for analysis will be selected. In smaller communities, all buildings which may- appear to be potentially hazardous to multiple life loss may be selected. On the other hand, in larger communities, only a typical sample may be surveyed, dependent upon resources and the number of potential risks. Definition of Life Loss Target Hazard The potential life loss risk levels may cause different concerns in different communities. It may be helpful to establish parameters for your community to use as a guide in selecting target buildings. Three sample definitions are listed below. The first prescribes a very broad inter- pretation, the second a severity interpretation, and the third a more specific occupancy selection. Sample One: Any building in which a fire may occur and cause multiple life loss or injuries. Sample Two: Any building in which a fire may occur and place more than X people in potential jeopardy. Sample Three: Any multiple residential occupancy with interior exit corridors and and in which fire may cause multiple loss of life or injuries. Once the target hazards have been identified, they should be organized in a systematic way by occupancy and fire management zone. STEP 2 ORGANIZING THE SURVEY TEAM After the target buildings have been selected, a survey team(s) should be organized. Again, in communities where only a small number of buildings are to be surveyed, one team may be sufficient. If there are many target buildings, it may be desirable to form a number of survey teams. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-21 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Each team should have two or three members. Ideally, a team would include people knowledgeable in local building codes, fire safety codes and fire suppression techniques. In this way, they can contribute jointly toward better risk inter- pretations . Where necessary, fire suppression personnel may be used to make the surveys. In this case they should be trained in recognizing the important life safety factors and deviations that may make them ineffective. STEP 3 CONDUCTING THE SURVEYS As was stated before, this guide should not be used for evaluating health care facilities where the physical or mental capacities of the occupants may be impaired or where the freedom of the occupants is restricted. Also, large assembly areas such as gymnasiums, auditoriums or large work areas may need special consideration. In these occupancies, attention should be given to the potential of a fire blocking exit ways. No one fire should be able to block facilities to the extent of inhibiting orderly egress from the building. Where questions arise relating to life safety in any existing occupancy, a nationally recognized fire and life safety code should be used. For example, there is the National Fire Protection Association's "Life Safety Code," No. 101 . Where occupancies or portions of occupancies are separated from others by a two-hour fire separation wall, they may be considered as a separate occu- pancy. Care should be exercised in determining the in- tegrity of exit facilities. In making life risk surveys there are four pri- mary safety factors that need to be evaluated. 1 . Building Code Requirements Is the building constructed and maintained in accordance with a current edition of a nationally recognized building code? NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-22 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Deviations which may render required safety features ineffective: o Unprotected openings between floors. o Unprotected openings in fire walls. o Smoke or fire doors blocked open. o Inoperative fire alarms. o Exit corridor penetrations (transoms, venti- lators, etc.). o Hazardous area enclosures penetrated (boiler rooms, incinerators, etc.). o Altered ventilation systems. o Storage or handling of hazardous materials not permitted by the code. o Obstructed exit corridors or stairways. o Locked exit doors. 2. Automatic Water Sprinkler Protection Is the building fully protected by an automatic sprinkler system protecting all portions of the building and installed in accordance with the requirements of a nationally recognized fire code? Does the building have a partial automatic sprink- ler system protecting all exit ways, stairways, open areas ancillary to the exit ways, and haz- ardous areas in, the building? 3. Automatic Products of Combustion Detection System Are all portions of the building protected by a products of combustion detection system in- stalled in accordance with a nationally recog- nized fire code? 4. Exit Facilities Are exits and exit ways provided in accordance with a nationally recognized code, without devia- tions? Do all occupied areas have exits of suf- ficient capacity leading directly to the outside and to ground level in a manner so a fire that occurs within the building could not jeopardize exit facilities for any area? NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-23 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH STEP 4 CLASSIFYING LIFE RISK Assessment of life risk must take into account several different factors. One of the major con- cerns involves the number of occupants and their ability to safely exit from the building without assistance. Very young or elderly occupants would indicate a higher life risk than other age groups. Those with physical or mental impair- ments would present a greater risk. Crowded oc- cupancies place more people in danger, increasing the total life risk. Another major concerns in life risk is the use of the building. In residential type occupancies the occupants would be anticipated to be aspleep during a significant part of the time. This fact that they are not awake and alert, able to detect and react quickly to a fire situation, greatly increases the danger to these persons. Early warning smoke detection and alarm systems are key- factors in compensating for the added risk. In making an assessment of life risk, the factors of numbers, age, condition and activities, of . the occupants must be taken into account. Fire of- ficers should project anticipated fire conditions on the need for search and rescue personnel to rapidly remove endangered occupants. The life risk assessment should consider whether or not it is even feasible for the occupants to escape from anticipated fire conditions, with or without fire department assistance. The following system is intended to be used as a guideline to categorize life risk. Experienced personnel may decide to place a building in a higher or lower classification due to particular circumstances or factors. Life The actual classification of life risk is done Risk using the Life Risk Matrix and the accompanying Rating directions that follow. The first thing to look at are the exit arrange - ments . Categorize these exit arrangements into one of three basic groupings: 1 . All areas have direct exits to the exterior of the building at ground level or via outside NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY GMiMaHaaiMHn*^inBaniBnBnnHna^HBHHHHni^HHHaaBBBnHi 3-24 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH corridors and stairways. 2. The building has exits complying with or equi- valent to a current edition of a nationally recognized code with access to exits via the interior corridors. 3. The exit facilities do not comply with or are not equivalent to a current edition of a nationally recognized code. The next set of things to consider are the pro- tection requirements. 1 . The building is fully sprinklered and fully covered by a products of combustion detection/ alarm system. 2. The building is fully sprinklered or fully covered by a products of combustion detection/ alarm system. 3. The exit corridors are sprinklered and all the sleeping areas are protected by products of combustion detection equipment. 4. The products of combustion detection systems are provided in sleeping areas only. 5. The ■ structure has manually activated fire alarm system only. 6-. No early warning system is provided. The third set of considerations deals with the actual categories used to evaluate life risk. A brief descripton of each follows. Very Low Risk These are buildings that present little or no identifiable risk due to very low occupancy or very high level of built-in protection. There are buildings which are never occupied by more than occupants at any one time. A community may determine the appropriate number based on local circumstances. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-25 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH OR These are single story buildings with direct exits to the exterior at ground level from every occupied area, fully protected by a products of combustion detection system. OR These are buildings fully protected with both automatic sprinklers and products of combustion detection systems and exits complying with a nationally recognized code. Low Risk These are buildings that present low life risk because of inherent features of the building including construction, suppression, detection, and exit facilities. Medium. Risk These are buildings that may present significant life risk to the occupants in the area of the fire. High Risk These are buildings that may present undue risk to occupants of the fire floor and areas adjacent to the fire. These are buildings in which occupants are not provided with adequate early warning and/or fire conditions may compromise their access to exits. Very High Risk These are buildings which present undue risk to occupants of the fire floor and areas above the fire floor. These are buildings which do not provide safe exits from all areas and would endanger the' occupants through the rapid spread of smoke, heat and fire. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-26 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH • *****^**^**^**^*^**^***-A-****^***Tt************************** Life Risk Matrix Exit Classification Protection All exterior exits Interior exits access corridor Inadequate exits Fully sprinklered AND full detection VERY LOW VERY LOW LOW Fully sprinklered OR full detection VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Sprinklered exit: corri- dors AND detectors in sleeping areas VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Detectors in sleeping areas only LOW MEDIUM HIGH Manual fire alarm only MEDIUM HIGH VERY HIGH No early warning MEDIUM VERY HIGH VERY HIGH NOTE The survey team should consider the occupancy use and the number of people at risk in a particular building. An unusually high occupant load or other conditions could indicate a higher or lower life risk categorization. *********************************************************** STEP 5 RISK CALCULATION The following points must always be kept in mind. o The Life Risk Analysis Guide is simply that: a guide for use by knowledgeable people to esti- mate the potential life risk in occupied build- NATIONAL FIRE^CADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-27 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH o Unique situations will require special consid- erations . o The use by knowledgeable persons is essential. o The team approach is important, if not essen- tial. o The results of the survey can be used to pin- point risks and to make decisions relating to acceptable risk. o The level of risk will later be compared with the historical frequency of such instances so the likelihood of it occurring in the future can be predicted. Limits Finally, it must again be pointed out that this of the guide cannot be effectively used as an inspection Guide tool nor as a substitute for quality fire pro- tection engineering analysis. It is intended to be used only to estmate the relative degree of life risk in different buildings. IV. Community Consequences Community Community consequences take into consideration Conse- all of the tangible and intangible ways in which quences a fire may impact on the community as a whole. The community impact will vary depending on the size and the character of the community. The same fire in two locations will often receive different ratings. The impact on the community must be evaluated in relation to the potential impact of a particular fire on a particular com- munity. In addition to direct life loss and property damage, losses in terms of wages and tax revenues should be anticipated. The loss of pride and community spirit felt when a local landmark or a tourist attraction burns down, the feeling of loss sensed when the oldest building in town is no more or the tragedy of the loss of the town's original records affect us all yet we can place no value on them or even explain our loss to others. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-28 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Very Low Risk The community would feel no loss. Damage would be insignificant and localized. Low Risk Other than the fire department and those directly involved with the fire, no community impact would be anticipated. Medium Risk The fire would receive public attention. Some of the people would be temporarily out of work and some tax revenue might be lost. High Risk The entire community would know of the fire. Jobs might be lost permanently and the loss of tax revenue could be significant. A general feeling of remorse would be expected. Very High Risk The community expresses shock or outrage. The loss of jobs and tax revenue would cause major problems. A major portion of any investigation would seek out "those who allowed this to happen." Indicators would be large numbers of deaths, jobs lost permanently, bankrupt businesses, etc. Rating By the time the pre-incident risk assessment has Form been carried out and the fire risk rating form Utility has been filled in, we should have a good under- standing of what it means to both the fire de- partment and the community as a whole. The water requirements section will be discussed in the next unit. The rest of the form must be subjected to another series of questions: o Why are the ratings so high? o What can be done to reduce the ratings? o What immediate and long-range actions should the fire department take to improve their efficiency and effectiveness? NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-29 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Are the owners and/or occupants aware of the danger? Is the community aware of the danger? Do the same problems show up in other build- ings and FMA's? How much loss is the community willing to withstand? How much of the risk is unprotected, i.e., beyond the capability of the fire depart- ment? Answers The most obvious answer to the first three ques- Are tions would seem to be fixed protection in the Available form of automatic sprinklers or at least detec- tion systems. However, this would require a retroactive code which would require a consider- able commitment of time and money. In many places retroactive codes are not considered as viable solutions. During the rest of the course, these and other issues will be studied. Problem solving strate- gies will be introduced which will lead to alter- native solutions to the problems of risk which have been identified. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-30 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH RISK WORKSHEET I. IJhat is risk? 3. How is risk measured? A. B. C. D. E. F. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-31 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH CONCORD COLLEGE Concord College sits on a beautiful campus, 2 miles from the center of town. Its 500-acre campus is considered a showplace of American college architecture today. The campus buildings range in age from 3 to 80 years and are kept in elegant condition by the college's high endowments, generous alumni and steep tuition rates. Almost 3,600 students live in the dormitories on campus. These dorms range from an 8-story fire-resistive building constructed in 1977 to a series of three-story edifices constructed in the 1920 's. The older dorms are ordinary construction (brick-wood joisted) and feature long corridors with rooms on both sides. Approximately 10 years ago, wired-glass partitions were installed on each floor to separate the stairs from the corridors, but many of the doors are habitually wedged open by the residents to provide better ventilation. Transoms over the room doors are also kept open for the same purpose. Manually activated fire alarm systems were installed at the same time as the stairway partitions. Classroom and administrative buildings on campus are of similar vintage and construction as the dorms. The fronts of the buildings are dominated by white columns, and the backs of most buildings feature traditional fire escapes. Automatic sprinklers have been installed in the basements of a few of the larger buildings. The buildings erected since 1968 have dry standpipes in the stairways. The only fire protection equipment in most areas is comprised of pressurized water extinguishers and 1-1/2-inch hose cabinets . The campus is served by an extension of the town's water system. An 8- inch line feeds a loop around the campus and hydrants are conveniently located. The water supply was recently tested at 2,375 gpm. The campus is patrolled at night by a security force of three roving personnel and one supervisor. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-33 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH SITUATION Last Friday night your department responded to a fire on the fourth floor of the newest dorm building. The fire gutted one room and caused heavy smoke damage to the third-floor corridor and several other rooms. The fire was started by a candle that was left burning when the occupant went to watch television in a lounge. Six students and two security guards were treated for smoke inhalation and two of the students were admitted to a hospital for overnight observation. In addition, five firefighters were treated at the scene for exhaustion. The firefighters were relieved that the door between the room and the corridor remained shut until they were in position with a 1-1/2-inch attack line. Several speculated about what would have happened with the same fire in one of the older dorms, particularly the ones with glass transoms over the room doors. This was the first working fire on campus since 1962 when the groundskeeper ' s storage building burned down. The only major fire that anyone can remember was the one that de- stroyed the chapel on a cold winter night in 1951. You nave decided that it is time to have a better look at your ability to provide adequate protection for this campus. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-34 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Grace Hall CONCORD COLLEGE BUILT IN 1927 • .t S Back Stairs Fir e Esc a P e * / is?' ni DORMITORY OCCUPANCY : 2 STUDENTS PER ROOM 36 ROOMS PER FLOOR EACH ROOM IS 19'x12' (228 sq, fU-13034 sq, ft, PER FLOOR CEILINGS ARE 10' HIGH CORRIDORS ARE 10' WIDE 3 STORIES ORDINARY CONSTRUCTION NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-35 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INITIAL ATTACK FIRE FLOW FORM Occupancy : Dimensions of largest single open space: Length Width Height Cubic foot volume: cu. ft. Cubic feet divided by 100 = GPM Cubic feet divided by 200 = Total Gallons Needed NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3 ~ 3C NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE FLOW ESTIMATE FORM BLOCK A: BASIC INFORMATION Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by Est. F.F. GPM BLOCK B: DETERMINE TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Ordinary Masonry or Concrete Non-Combus tible Wood Frame Mixed (Use predominant type) BLOCK C: DETERMINE EFFECTIVE AREA Add Largest floor area (sq. ft.) a) 50% of all other floor areas except for fire resistive construction; b) 25% of two largest successive floor areas for fire resistive construction with vertical separations ; c) 50% of eight largest successive floors for fire resistive construction with unprotected vertical openings. (sq. ft.) TOTALS COLUMN total sq.ft. (C) BLOCK D: DETERMINE BASE FIRE FLOW Select the correct GPM figure from Table 1 . GPM (D) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-37 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH A M BLOCK E: DETERMINE OCCUPANCY FACTOR ADJUSTMENT Step 1 : Select a high or low fire load factor up to 25% Step 2: Multiply (D) by this factor. Step 3: If HIGH RISK, add the amount to (D) ; if LOW RISK subtract from (D) . NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL GPM (E) U M R E E N T BLOCK F: DETERMINE EXPOSURE ADJUSTMENT Using the tables below, enter the separation and the adjustment for each of the building's four "faces." Separation Adjustment in Feet Range 0-10 11 - 30 31 - 60 61 - 100 15 - 25% 10 - 20% 7-15% 5-10% Expo- sure Sep. Feet Adj. North East South West Total adjust- ment (not more than 75%) Multiply (E) by this percentage. NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL = GPM (F) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-38 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BLOCK G: TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW II If less than 500 GPM, enter II II 500 GPM. H 11 If greater than 12,000 GPM, 11 K enter 12,000 GPM. 11 1 If less than 2,500 GPM, K 1[ round off (H) to the nearest 11 1f 250 GPM. 11 K If greater than 2,500 GPM, II 1f round off (H) to the nearest K 1f 500 GPM. 11 TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW ROUNDED OFF GPM (G) (ENTER TOTAL ON LINE THREE, BLOCK A) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-39 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ************************************************************ Life Risk Matrix Exit Classification Protection All exterior exits Interior exits access corridor Inadequate exits Fully sprinklered AND full detection VERY LOW VERY LOW LOW Fully sprinklered OR full detection VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Sprinklered exit corri- dors AND detectors in sleeping areas VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Detectors in sleeping areas only LOW MEDIUM HIGH Manual fire alarm only MEDIUM HIGH VERY HIGH No early warning MEDIUM VERY HIGH VERY HIGH NOTE The survey team should consider the occupancy use and the number of people at risk in a particular building. An unusually high occupant load or other conditions could indicate a higher or lower life risk categorization. *********************************************************** NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-40 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE RISK RATING FORM SUMMARY Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Ordinary Non-combustible Wood Frame Mixed Property Risk (gpm's) Life Risk Community Consequence Initial Attack Sustained Attack Special Risk Factors: NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-41 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Stemple Towers CONCORD COLLEGE Stairs Stairs 240' STEMPLE TOWERS 8 STORIES 19,000 sq, ft, PER FLOOR FIRE RESISTIVE CONSTRUCTION BUILT IN 1977 DORMITORY OCCUPANCY 2 STUDENTS PER ROOM 48 ROOMS PER FLOOR ROOMS ARE 20'x15' (300 sq. ft.) ALL CEILINGS 10' HIGH CORRIDORS ARE 10' WIDE LOUNGE ON EACH FLOOR 20'x40' (800 sq, ft,) (NOTE: LOUNGE IS NOT SEPARATED FROM CORRIDOR) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-43 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INITIAL ATTACK FIRE FLOW FORM Occupancy Dimensions of largest single open space: Length Uidth Height Cubic foot volume: cu. ft Cubic feet divided by 100 = GPM NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-44 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE FLOW ESTIMATE FORM BLOCK A: BASIC INFORMATION Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by Est. F.F. GPM BLOCK B: DETERMINE TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Ordinary Masonry or Concrete Non- Combustible Wood Frame Mixed (Use predominant type) BLOCK C: DETERMINE EFFECTIVE AREA Largest floor area (sq. ft.) Add: a) 50% of all other floor areas except for fire resistive construction; b) 25% of two largest successive floor areas for fire resistive construction with vertical separations ; c) 50% of eight largest successive floors for fire resistive construction with unprotected vertical openings. (sq. ft.) TOTALS COLUMN total sq.ft. (C) BLOCK D: DETERMINE BASE FIRE FLOW Select the correct GPM figure from Table 1 . GPM (D) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-45 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BLOCK E: DETERMINE OCCUPANCY FACTOR ADJUSTMENT Step 1 : Select a high or low fire load factor up to 25% Step 2: Multiply (D) by this factor. Step 3: If HIGH RISK, add the amount to (D) ; if LOW RISK subtract from (D) . NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL GPM (E) U M R E E N T BLOCK F: DETERMINE EXPOSURE ADJUSTMENT Using the tables below, enter the separation and the adjustment for each of the building's four "faces." Separation in Feet Adjustment Range Expo- sure Sep. Feet Adj. 0-10 11 - 30 31 - 60 61 - 100 15 - 25% 10 - 20% 7-15% 5-10% North East South West Total adjust- ment (not more than 75%) Multiply (E) by this percentage. NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL - GPM (F) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-46 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BLOCK G: TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW 11 If less than 500 GPM, enter II K 500 GPM. 11 11 If greater than 12,000 GPM, 11 11 enter 12,000 GPM. 11 11 If less than 2,500 GPM, 11 11 round off (H) to the nearest 1f 11 250 GPM. 1f 11 If greater than 2,500 GPM, II 11 round off (H) to the nearest 11 11 500 GPM. 11 TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW ROUNDED OFF GPM (G) (ENTER TOTAL ON LINE THREE, BLOCK A) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-47 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ******** *********** ********* *************** ***************** Life Risk Matrix Exit Classification Protection All exterior exits Interior exits access corridor Inadequate exits Fully sprinklered AND full detection VERY LOW VERY LOW LOW Fully sprinklered OR full detection VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Sprinklered exit corri- dors AND detectors in sleeping areas VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Detectors in sleeping areas only LOW MEDIUM HIGH Manual fire alarm only MEDIUM HIGH VERY HIGH No early warning MEDIUM VERY HIGH VERY HIGH NOTE The survey team should consider the occupancy use and the number of people at risk in a particular building. An unusually high occupant load or other conditions could indicate a higher or lower life risk categorization. *********************************************************** NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-48 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE RISK RATING FORM SUMMARY Occupancy Name Address Calculated by Classification F.M.A. TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Non-combustible Wood Frame Ordinary Mixed Property Risk (gpm's) Life Risk Community Consequence Initial Attack Sustained Attack Special Risk Factors NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-49 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH SHALL GROUP ACTIVITY For the next 45 minutes, you will be involved in a group activity applying the information and tools you have just learned . This manual contains a set of three scenarios. Your instructor will assign one to your group. Following each scenario is a set of worksheets needed for the activity. You and your group will do four things. 1. Calculate the needed fire flow for the initial attack. 2. Calculate the needed fire flow for the sustained attack. 3. Estimate life risk. 4. Estimate community consequences. When you have reached some consensus, place the information on the Fire Risk Summary Form and select one spokesperson to give a report to the class when called on by the instructor. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3. 51 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BEARPAU SHOE COMPANY The Bearpaw Shoe Company has been one of the largest indus- tries in your area for over 75 years. Its complex of two- and three-story buildings is crowded into the heart of the industrial area, bordering on the central business district. Within the last 10 years, shoe production has declined sig- nificantly and parts of the complex have been sold and rented to a variety of other companies. The number of employees has remained about the same, however. In addition to the shoe company, parts of the complex are now occupied by a manufacturer of styrofoam cups, a tire distributor, a swimming pool supply company, a cabinet shop, a furniture wholesaler, and a truck body manufacturer. Each of these occupants has a portion of the complex ranging from a whole wing to part of a floor. The buildings were constructed in the early 1900 ' s , some of heavy timber and some of fire-resistive construction. All of the buildings have automatic sprinklers, supplied by an elevated water tank and a steam-driven, 1,500-gpm fire pump. The steam for the fire pump comes from the shoe factory's main boilers that used to run continuously. Now they are shut down at night and on weekends and it takes the plant engineer 15 minutes to get them fired up again. There is a system of yard hydrants with a good water sup- ply, connected to the private supply and a connection to the public water system. The public water system can deliver 1,250 gpm in this area of the city at 20 psi residual pressure. Static pressure is 50 psi. The complex is separated from the buildings on Commercial Street by a 20-foot wide alley. The three-and four-story buildings on Commercial street contain a variety of stores and businesses, many with apartments on the upper floors. Over the years, the plant's sprinkler system and fire bri- gade have controlled numerous fires without serious damage. The fire brigade was disbanded 5 years ago and since that time the public fire department has responded to a few small fires, each controlled by one sprinkler head. Your fire inspector has just returned from making an inspec- tion of the property and informed you about the lack of steam for the boiler at night and on weekends. He is also concerned about the adequacy of the fixed fire protection in view of the changing occupancy. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-52 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Bearpaw Shoe Co. Shopping Center Commercial St. (NUMBERS IN CORNERS REPRESENT NUMBER OF FLOORS.) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-53 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BEARPAW SHOE CO. ENCLOSED BRIDGE AT 2ND FLOOR 120' 50' METAL SHED 20' HIGH USED FOR TIRE STORAGE 3 STORIES 9600 sq, ft, PER FLOOR HEAVY TIMBER CONSTRUCTION INCLUDES ONE OPEN STAIRWAY, ONE ENCLOSED STAIRWAY AND AN OPEN FREIGHT ELEVATOR CEILINGS ARE 14' HIGH GROUND FLOOR - TIRES SECOND FLOOR - STYROFOAM CUPS THIRD FLOOR - FURNITURE NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY OCCUPANCY STORAGE 3-54 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INITIAL ATTACK FIRE FLOW FORM Occupancy Dimensions of largest single open space: Length Width Height Cubic foot volume: cu. ft. Cubic feet divided by 100 = GPM NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-55 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE FLOW ESTIMATE FORM BLOCK A: BASIC INFORMATION Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by Est. F.F. GPM BLOCK B: DETERMINE TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Ordinary Masonry or Concrete Non- Combustible Wood Frame Mixed (Use predominant type) BLOCK C: DETERMINE EFFECTIVE AREA Largest floor area (sq.. ft.) Add: a) 50% of all other floor areas except for fire resistive construction; b) 25% of two largest successive floor areas for fire resistive construction with vertical separations ; c) 50% of eight largest successive floors for fire resistive construction with unprotected vertical openings. (sq. ft.) TOTALS COLUMN total .sq.ft. (C) BLOCK D: DETERMINE BASE FIRE FLOW Select the correct GPM figure from Table 1 . GPM (D) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-56 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH A D C J P T A M N E C N Y T BLOCK E: DETERMINE OCCUPANCY FACTOR ADJUSTMENT Step 1 : Select a high or low fire load factor up to 25% Step 2: Multiply (D) by this factor. Step 3: If HIGH RISK, add the amount to (D) ; if LOW RISK subtract from (D) . NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL = GPM (E) A E D X J P U s S T U M R E E N T BLOCK F: DETERMINE EXPOSURE ADJUSTMENT Using the tables below, enter the separation and the adjustment for each of the building's four "faces." Separation in Feet Adjustment Range Expo- sure Sep. Feet Adj . 0-10 11 - 30 31 - 60 61 - 100 15 - 25% 10 - 20% 7 - 15% 5-10% North East South West Total adjust- ment (not more than 75%) Multiply (E) by this percentage NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL _GPM (F) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-57 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BLOCK G: TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW 11 If less than 500 GPM, enter 11 500 GPM. II If greater than 12,000 GPM, 1f enter 12,000 GPM. I If less than 2,500 GPM, II round off (H) to the nearest 11 250 GPM. 1f 11 If greater than 2,500 GPM, 11 11 round off (H) to the nearest If 11 500 GPM. If TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW ROUNDED OFF GPM (G) (ENTER TOTAL ON LINE THREE, BLOCK A) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-58 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ************************************************************ Life Risk Matrix Exit Classification Protection All exterior exits Interior exits access corridor Inadequate exits Fully sprinkiered AND full detection VERY LOW VERY LOW LOW Fully sprinkiered OR full detection VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Sprinkiered exit corri- dors AND detectors in sleeping areas VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Detectors in sleeping areas only LOW MEDIUM HIGH Manual fire alarm only MEDIUM HIGH VERY HIGH No early warning MEDIUM VERY HIGH VERY HIGH NOTE The survey team should consider the occupancy use and the number of people at risk in a particular building. An unusually high occupant load or other conditions could indicate a higher or lower life risk categorization. ************************************************* NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-59 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE RISK RATING FORM SUMMARY Occupancy Name Address Calculated by Classification F.M.A. TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Ordinary Non-combustible Wood Frame Mixed Property Risk (gptn's) Life Risk Community Consequence Initial Attack Sustained Attack Special Risk Factors: NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-60 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ACADEMY MOTEL and FORT HILLIS HOTEL Several major loss-of- life fires in hotels and motels have received heavy exposure in the news media over the last 5 years. A five-death fire in a city 200 miles away has finally caught the attention of your Mayor, who calls to ask about the vulnerability of your community to this type of disaster. You have been waiting for this opportunity to get your foot' in the door for over 6 months--when you returned from a National Fire Academy course, " Fire Risk Analysis: A Systems Approach ." At your first meeting with the Mayor, you get to show her the risk analysis you have done on the hotels and motels in your community and the assessment of your current sup- pression capability. The Mayor gives you the green light to make proposals for changes to the entire council at a public meeting. You have 30 days to prepare. The hotels and motels in your community fall into several categories, but you have identified two groups that present an exceptional risk. Your assessment is reinforced by nationally reported experience with these types of buildings and a few "close calls" locally. While you have not had any hotel or motel deaths in your community lately, you have had one or two fires each year that could have been much worse with just slightly different circumstances. The first of two types of high risk occupancies that you have identified is the two-story enclosed corridor motel. You have such a motel, belonging to a major chain. This one has eight sections, linked together around a central courtyard having a swimming pool and recreation area. The construction is brick outer walls with wood partitions and floor/roof assemblies. The sections are divided by firewalls, with fire doors dividing the interior corridors at the firewalls. The fire doors are held open with 180°F fusible links. Each wing has at least one stairway join- ing the first and second floors. You are aware of several cases where the fire walls have been penetrated in the attic spaces to run air ducts or electrical lines between sections . The rooms open onto the central corridors from both sides, with an average of 60 rooms between firewalls (30 on each floor) . The room doors are solid core wood and many of them have spring- loaded hinges that make them self-closing. This chain has installed battery-operated smoke detectors NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-61 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH in all their rooms, but this is not required by any code. Manually activated local fire alarm systems are required. The only fire fighting equipment required by code is extin- guishers mounted every 150 feet in the corridors. Some of the hotels have pressurized water units and some have 2A 10BC dry chemical units. Soft-drink machines and ice machines are installed under the stairs on the ground floor. Roll-away beds and maids 1 carts are often found in the corridors, although a small storage room is provided for them on each floor in each section. These buildings were in compliance with the building code at the time of their construction. Changes in the code since that time required that corridor separation doors and room doors be self-closing and be kept closed at all times. Emergency lighting is now required in all exit corridors, and each room must have a smoke detector. These require- ments are not retroactive. The second type of high rise structure that creates some potential problems for you is the old Fort Hillis Hotel. It is typical in most respects. Built in 1911, it is ten stories tall, constructed with a concrete frame, and granite outer walls. It is considered a landmark and is on the National Registry of Historic Sites. There are 30 guest rooms per floor on the second through eighth floors. The ground floor and mezzanine include several meeting rooms, a ballroom, and two restaurants, all of which open onto the main lobby. The west end of the ninth floor contains a large ballroom that extends through the tenth floor. The remainder of the ninth floor contains the hotel offices and service areas, while four luxury suites occupy the remainder of the tenth floor. The corridors on each floor form a W- shaped pattern with a stairway on the end of each of three wings. These stairways were added in the early 1960's and replaced old fire escapes. The stairs are enclosed by concrete on the outside walls and separated by wired-glass partition and door assemblies from the corridors. The doors are held open with fusible links . There are three elevators at the center of the building, and facing the elevator bank is a grand stairway extending from the lobby to. the tenth floor. This stairway has marble steps, polished brass handrails, and polished oak paneling all the way up. This stairway is not separated from the corridors . NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-62 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH The doors to the rooms are carved wood, without closers. When new locks were installed recently, the hotel paid over $75 per door to natch the antique faceplates around the locks. Each room has a transom to obtain air from the corridor. The basement, which is not sprinklered , contains a disco with an occupant capacity of 650. This is reached through an open stairway from the hotel lobby, although one exit door leads directly to a narrow outside stairway to the rear alley. In 1968, three hotel guests died in a fire on the fifth floor of this particular hotel. The fire started in a guest room and extended to the corridor. Twenty additional guests, four hotel employees, and eleven firefighters were overcome by smoke. Numerous rescues were made with ladders as smoke filled most of the building, but firefighters were successful in holding the fire to the room and a section of the corridor. At that time, officials praised the newly installed manual fire alarm system for alerting guests to the danger and promptly summoning firefighters through its direct connection to the fire department. The fire was extinguished by one 1-1/2-inch line from a hose cabinet and a 2-1/2-inch line from the dry standpipe in one of the exit stairway towers. The standpipes had been installed, along with the stairways and alarm system, during a major renovation project during 1960-1962. There was no building code at the time of the original construction. The renovation of 1962 brought it into compliance with the code in effect at that time, with several variances allowed to preserve the historic character of the building. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-63 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS! A SYSTEMS APPROACH ACADEMY MOTEL 335' c 6 A-Wing c s 6 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-64 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS. A SYSTEMS APPROACH Motel D-Wing 1 IE 1 ^ 0202 | D201 D204 0203 D206 D205 D208| | D207 D210 | | D209 D212 | | D211 D214 |D213 m CO D216 | | D215 CM D218 1 D217 D220 |D219 D222 | D221 D224 D223 D226 | ] D225 D228| |D227 D23o| | D229 / ( •> 1 1 111 \ x N Fire wall 11,750 sq. ft./floor Room : 330 sq. ft. (22 ft. x 15 ft.) Corridor : 6 ft. wide Ceilings : 8 ft. Fire wall 50' NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-65 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FORT HILLIS HOTEL (BLOCK PLAN) THREE-LEVEL PARKING GARAGE m STANDPIPES & A HOTEL MAIN ENTRANCE 1 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-66 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Fort Hillis Hotel Typical Floor pita —12^* Service □So \ / x 32' *> DIE 12' Wide Corridors 25,680 Sq. Ft. Per Floor 12' Ceilings Avg. Room = 480 Sq. Ft. (20' x 24') NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-67 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INITIAL ATTACK FIRE FLOW FORM Occupancy : Dimensions of largest single open space: Length Width Height Cubic foot volume: cu. ft. Cubic feet divided by 100 = GPM NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-68 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE FLOW ESTIMATE FORM BLOCK A: BASIC INFORMATION Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by Est. F.F. GPM BLOCK B: DETERMINE TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Ordinary Masonry or Concrete Non-Combus tible Wood Frame Mixed (Use predominant type) BLOCK C: DETERMINE EFFECTIVE AREA Largest floor area (sq. ft.) Add: a) 50% of all other floor areas except for fire resistive construction; b) 25% of two largest successive floor areas for fire resistive construction with vertical separations ; c) 50% of eight largest successive floors for fire resistive construction with unprotected vertical openings. (sq. ft.) TOTALS COLUMN total sq.ft. (C) BLOCK D: DETERMINE BASE FIRE FLOW Select the correct GPM figure from Table 1 GPM (D) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-69 FIRE. RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH C N Y T BLOCK E: DETERMINE OCCUPANCY FACTOR ADJUSTMENT Step 1 : Select a high or low fire load factor up to 25% Step 2: Multiply (D) by this factor. Step 3: If HIGH RISK, add the amount to (D) ; if LOW RISK subtract from (D) . NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL = GPM (E) U M R E E N T BLOCK F: DETERMINE EXPOSURE ADJUSTMENT Using the tables below, enter the separation and the adjustment for each of the building's four "faces." Separation in Feet Adjustment Range Expo- sure Sep. Feet Ad]. 0-10 11 - 30 31 - 60 61 - 100 15 - 25% 10 - 20% 7-15% 5-10% North East South West Total adjust- ment (not more than 75%) Multiply (E) by this percentage. NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL = GPM (F) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-70 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH LOCK G: TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW 11 If less than 500 GPM, enter 11 11 500 GPM. 11 If If greater than 12,000 GPM, 11 1 enter 12,000 GPM. 11 I If less than 2,500 GPM, If K round off (H) to the nearest 1f II 250 GPM. 11 11 If greater than 2,500 GPM, If 1f round off (H) to the nearest If 11 500 GPM. 1f TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW ROUNDED OFF = GPM (G) (ENTER TOTAL ON LINE THREE, BLOCK A) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-71 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ******************************************************* Life Risk Matrix Exit Classification Protection All exterior exits Interior exits access corridor Inadequate exits Fully sprinklered AND full detection VERY LOW VERY LOW LOW Fully sprinklered OR full detection VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Sprinklered exit corri- dors AND detectors in sleeping areas VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Detectors in sleeping areas only LOW MEDIUM HIGH Manual fire alarm only MEDIUM HIGH VERY HIGH No early warning MEDIUM VERY HIGH VERY HIGH NOTE The survey team should consider the occupancy use and the number of people at risk in a particular building. An unusually high occupant load or other conditions could indicate a higher or lower life risk categorization. *********************************************************** NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-72 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE RISK RATING FORM SUMMARY Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Non-combustible Wood Frame Ordinary Mixed Property Risk (gpm's) Life Risk Community Consequence Initial Attack Sustained Attack Special Risk Factors NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-73 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BOARDING HOUSE Along Che river bank in your community are stately old homes, built 60 to 70 years ago by the wealthy. These two-and three-story homes are a variety of wood and brick construction and average about 2,500 square feet in floor area on each level. They line both sides of a tree-shaded street, some facing the river and others backing it. In the last 20 or 30 years, the original families moved away, selling out to people who made them into apartments and rooming houses. Gradually, this changed the complexion of the neighborhood. Within the last few years, many owners began to contract with the State Department of Social Welfare to take in the former residents of some institutions for the handicapped on a residential custodial care basis. These homes must be inspected and certified by the state, which has preempted local jurisdiction over these state-contracted boarding homes. Local officials are not even informed when these facilities are licensed, and generally find out about them when they respond to emergency medical service calls. The state requirements call for at least one single-station smoke alarm in the hall on each floor plus a manual pull station that is part of the local alarm. Heat detectors must be in each room. A solid-core wood door must be installed in each stairway at each floor level, and there must be at least two stairways. There may be up to four occupants in each room. Host of them have obvious physical or mental handicaps. A single home may contain 30 to 50 occupants. The home is required to have at least one responsible person on duty at all times and fire drills must be held at least every 90 days. State inspectors check the homes annually to renew their permits and require the fire alarm system and extinguishers to be serviced each year. The telephone number of the local fire department must be posted adjacent to each telephone. SITUATION The Captain from Engine 3 returned from an EMS call at one of the homes and wrote a letter to the editor of the local newspaper proclaiming that "a grave hazard exists and nobody seems to care." Since the morning edition was delivered, you have been deluged with telephone calls asking if the allegations are true and what you propose to do about them. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-75 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH RIVERSIDE BOARDING HOME BLOCK PLAN 3-76 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH MVERSIDE BOARDING HOME 2ND FLOOR II 111111111111 EXTERI - 50 ! | ~* 1 \ 3 3 / / 3 3 \ / 2 \ 95' 2 1 \ 3 \ \ 2 / UP 2 mum mrrm =S \ 3 \ 2 / 1 DOWN \ " 3 4 BALCONY ORDINARY CONSTRUCTION ATTIC - 28500 cu, ft, 2 STORIES WITH ATTIC CORRIDORS ARE 5' WIDE USED FOR STORAGE ..,>„ r»^ne adc i k« y ir' MOST ROOMS ARE 15 X 15 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-77 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INITIAL ATTACK FIRE FLOW FORM Occupancy Dimensions of largest single open space: Length Width Height Cubic foot volume: cu. ft Cubic feet divided by 100 = CPU NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-78 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE FLOW ESTIMATE FORM BLOCK A: BASIC INFORMATION Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by Est. F.F. GPM BLOCK B: DETERMINE TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Ordinary Masonry or Concrete Non-Combus tible Wood Frame Mixed (Use predominant type) BLOCK C: DETERMINE EFFECTIVE AREA Largest floor area (sq. ft.) a) 50% of all other floor areas Add except for fire resistive construction; b) 25% of two largest successive floor areas for fire resistive construction with vertical separations ; c) 50% of eight largest successive floors for fire resistive construction with unprotected vertical openings. (sq. ft.) TOTALS COLUMN total sq.ft. (C) BLOCK D: DETERMINE BASE FIRE FLOW Select the correct GPM figure from Table 1 . GPM (D) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-79 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH A D C J BLOCK E: DETERMINE OCCUPANCY FACTOR ADJUSTMENT Step 1 : Select a high or low fire load factor up to 25% Step 2: Multiply (D) by this factor. Step 3: If HIGH RISK, add the amount to (D) ; if LOW RISK subtract from (D) . NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL = GPM (E) A E D X J U M R E E N T BLOCK F: DETERMINE EXPOSURE ADJUSTMENT Using the tables below, enter the separation and the adjustment for each of the building's four "faces." Separation in Feet Adjustment Range Expo- sure Sep. Feet Adj . 0-10 11 - 30 31 - 60 61 - 100 15 - 25% 10 - 20% 7-15% 5-10% North East South West Total adjust- ment (not more than 75%) Multiply (E) by this percentage, NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL GPM (F) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-80 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BLOCK G: TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW II If less than 500 GPM, enter 11 500 GPM. 11 If greater than 12,000 GPM, K enter 12,000 GPM. K If less than 2,500 GPM, 1f round off (H) to the nearest 11 250 GPM. K If greater than 2,500 GPM, 1f round off (H) to the nearest 11 500 GPM. K TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW ROUNDED OFF GPM (G) (ENTER TOTAL ON LINE THREE, BLOCK A) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-81 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ****** ********************** *********** ********************* Life Risk Matrix Exit Classification Protection All exterior exits Interior exits access corridor Inadequate exits Fully sprinklered AND full detection VERY LOW VERY LOW LOW Fully sprinklered OR full detection VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Sprinklered exit corri- dors AND detectors in sleeping areas VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Detectors in sleeping areas only LOW MEDIUM HIGH Manual fire alarm only MEDIUM HIGH VERY HIGH No early warning MEDIUM VERY HIGH VERY HIGH NOTE The survey team should consider the occupancy use and the number of people at risk in a particular building. An unusually high occupant load or other conditions could indicate a higher or lower life risk categorization. *********************************************************** NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-82 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIRE RISK RATING FORM SUMMARY Occupancy Name Address Calculated by Classification F.M.A. TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Non-combustible Wood Frame Ordinary Mixed Property Risk (gpm's) Life Risk Community Consequence Initial Attack Sustained Attack Special Risk Factors: NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-83 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit III: The Community at Risk I. Risk A. Definition B. Categories C. Determining Risk NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-85 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH D. Sources of risk II. Target Hazard III. Risk Modifiers NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-86 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH IV. Fixed Fire Protection Systems A. Active Systems Passive Systems C. Building Construction NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3-87 FTRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH V. Fire Ilanagement Areas A. Definition . Criteria for creating FIlA's C. Benefits D. Selection of target hazards NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3-88 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH VI. Determining Needed Fire Flow A. Value B. Initial Attack Calculation VII. Determining Needed Fire Flow (Sustained Attack) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3. 89 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH VII. Estimating Life Risk A. Complex issue B. Other considerations C. Management tool NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 3_ 90 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH VIII. Evaluating Community Consequences IX. Value of Rating Form NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 3 _ 91 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH UNIT IV FIRE SUPPRESSION IN THE COMMUNITY NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit IV: Fire Suppression in the Community Obj ective The participants will be able to identify fire suppression capability using specific measurement tools. Fire In this unit, we will focus on the fire fighting Protection aspect of fire protection. We will examine the fire suppression capability of the public fire protection forces serving the community. For the purposes of this discussion, we will consider fixed protection systems as efforts to lower the risk at a particular location, hopefully reducing the demand for public fire suppression capability. We will consider fire suppression capability to include all of the resources at the disposal of the public fire department to deal with an actual fire situation. Fire Fire suppression is one element of fire pro- Suppression tection. Suppression includes all actions and activities that are designed to control or extin- guish fires once they have been ignited. Fixed protection systems (i.e., automatic sprinklers, dry chemical systems) are designed to react to fires that break out at a specific location. The fire suppression role of the public fire depart- ment is to deliver mobile fire fighting capability to any location where a fire breaks out. Suppression capability is an expression of how much fire fighting power can be put into action when there is a fire. It includes the amount of apparatus, equipment, and personnel available; the time needed to respond and place equipment in action; the water supply; the application of tactics and strategy; the level of training; and all of the components that add up to effective fireground operations. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER , , 4-1 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Our process of estimating fire suppression capa- bility will provide us with a system to judge the level of resources available to the fire depart- ment and how well the fire department makes use of those resources. We are interested in how much actual fire fighting capability the- fire depart- ment can deliver and put into action when there is a fire to combat. This may include a wide variety of systems and methods, depending on local circumstances, organizations, and resource- fulness. This fire suppression capability should reflect the identified l'evel of risk in the community. A community that has a low-risk profile probably needs less suppression capability than a community with high risk. The comparison should be made on a case-by-case basis, looking at the risk and the suppression capability available to respond to that risk. The role of the fire department may be interpreted as filling the gap between the total risk and whatever protection has been pro- vided by other means to deal with that risk. The fire department is often the last line of defense between what is expected and what actually happens. Variety Different circumstances and operating methods of lead to a variety of different approaches to fire Approaches suppression. Fire departments range in size from large organizations with thousands of full-time career firefighters to small volunteer depart- ments with as few as a dozen members. The exami- nation of fire suppression capability should not be a comparison of these different approaches to each other (this is simply not realistic and a waste of time) , but should concentrate on deter- mining whether or not the suppression capability is adequate or appropriate to deal with the risk. Because of the variety of risks that muse be addressed by firefighters in different jurisdic- tions or in different locations within the same jurisdiction, suppression capability should be measured with respect to the identified hazards under consideration. This requires an assessment of the suppression capability needed to deal with a potential fire situation in a particular loca- tion and a comparison of the available suppression NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-2 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS. A SYSTEMS APPROACH capability with respect to that demand. The de- mand level comes from the assessment of risk in Unit II. Ue will use that demand in our assess- ment cC suppression capability. GPM Gallons-per-minute (gpm) delivery capability is a Delivery method of expressing suppression capability in Capability terms of gallons of water per minute that can be effectively applied by the fire fighting forces. This allows a direct comparison with the gpm demand expressions that may be calculated for target hazards. While gpm delivery capability is not an all-inclusive expression of fire sup- pression capability, it provides a standard measure that can be applied to a variety of situations . Starting with a calculated tire flow demand for the location under consideration (obtained from Unit II: Risk Analysis), this method measures how well the fire fighting force can deliver the calculated fire flow. The gpm delivery capability for a particular fire department or a particular location is most accurately determined by observing actual fire- ground operations or full-scale drill activities. The fire department's actual capability is influenced by numerous factors, including (but not limited to) response time and distance, water supply, apparatus type, condition and arrangement, the number of personnel responding, their training and physical condition, the command system, stan- dard operating procedures, and the number and type of support functions which are required at a particular scene. The suppression capability evaluation is based on two separate assessments of fireground operations. Initial attack evaluation examines the fire de- partment's ability to respond quickly and place an effective offensive attack in operation. Sustained attack evaluation is based on the fire department's ability to launch a heavy defensive fireground operation. In both cases, the evalu- ation is based on an effective gpm flow rate that can be applied. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Initial The measurement of suppression capability must Attack include both initial attack operations that And Full attempt to quickly deal with marginal situations Scale before they get out of control and full-scale Operations firefighting operations that can be assembled and placed into operation against major fires. The measurements must include not only the ability to apply water to the fire but also the ability to engage in search and rescue, forcible entry, ventilation, preservation of property, and addi- tional support activities as required by the situation. Time is a critical factor in evaluating suppres- sion capability since a fire can be expected to grow larger until the suppression capability over- comes the fire. The longer it takes to deliver effective suppression capability, the more gpm flow should be required to control it. A relatively small initial attack flow may be able to control a fire before it requires a much larger flow if the initial attack is provided quickly. If the fire exceeds the effective initial attack capability, the fire can be expected to grow until the suppression capability catches up and overcomes it. Both factors are important in estimating the effectiveness of fireground opera- tions and most fire departments attempt to pro- vide effective offensive and defensive suppression capability. Initial Initial attack capability should be considered in Attack--10 terms of a reflex action by the fire department. Minutes When an alarm is received, the fire department should be capable of responding quickly and with adequate equipment and personnel to place a reasonable fire attack in action without delay. For study purposes, we will evaluate initial attack 10 minutes after the fire department is notified of the alarm. This 10-minute time frame allows 5 minutes (more or less) to receive the alarm and dispatch companies and for the first units to travel to the scene. This would provide an additional 5 minutes (more or less) to place NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4_4 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH the initial attack, equipment and personnel in operation on che fireground. If the first units take more than 5 minutes to reach the scene, this simply leaves less time for setup prior to the evaluation. The 10-minute assessment examines how much suppression capability can be placed in operation within the first critical minutes after an alarm is received. Interior Offensive Tactics Initial attack capability should be measured based on the ability to place effective handlines in operation in interior positions, assuming that the initial attack team will engage in interior offensive fire fighting, attempting to gain con- trol of the fire before it exceeds their capabili- ty. This requires the assignment of personnel to activities that are not strictly involved in water application, such as search and rescue, forcible entry, and ventilation. The necessary commitment to these activities depends on the type and complexity of the target hazard- being used as the object of consideration. The initial attack is geared toward offensive fire fighting tactics, attempting to rapidly gain control of the fire before it grows too large. If the fire has already surpassed this stage, the initial attack force should be able to initiate some form of "holding action" until reinforcements arrive . Sustained Thirty minutes is used as the basic time frame Attack-- for measurement of the fire department's ability 30 Minutes to provide the full gpm fire flow for a parti- cular location. This reflects a time that permits the initial attack force to arrive, begin opera- tions, call for reinforcements, and then allow time for the additional units to respond and get into action. In urban areas, this might allow for a heavy response of multiple-alarm companies; while in rural areas, mutual-aid com- panies might not be able to travel the required distance in 30 minutes. This is a simple NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-5 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH reflection of reality, since a fire will normally continue to grow until, the fire suppression force is strong enough to overcome it or until it runs out of fuel. Exterior Defensive Strategy In this case, we will be considering fire suppres- sion capability in terms of an exterior defensive fire fighting operation, designed to confine a "fully involved" fire to a limited area. The full gpm fire flow demand is based on maximum involvement of the fire building and normally calls for the application of master streams or large handlines. The application of large volumes of water is more feasible if apparatus and equip- ment are adequately sec up for this type of opera- tion. Heavy gpm fire flow application requires an adequate and reliable water supply and the necessary deployment of apparatus and equipment to place large streams in effective operating positions . The term "sustained attack" relates to the fact that defensive fire fighting operations may re- quire the application of the full gpm fire flow for extended lengths of time. When a defensive operation, is necessary, it is assumed that the fire building itself cannot be saved and the pur- pose of the attack is to protect the community from the fire. Offensive The evaluation of an initial interior offensive vs. attack and an exterior defensive operation tests Defensive the ability of the fire department to handle two (Marginal very different types of fireground action. While Situations) situations encountered under actual field condi- tions may not fall strictly into one category or the other, this provides a reasonable basis of evaluation that can be used by most fire depart- ments. We will operate under the basic assumption that a fire department is capable of providing a strong initial attack force and that an adequate sustained defensive attack is probably capable NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY , , NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-6 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH of performing the various combinations of activi- ties that may 'be required on the fireground. (A further level of analysis could be directed toward the specific needs of a specifically identified target hazard.) Determining Initial attack and sustained attack capabilities Suppression can be evaluated in order to determine gpm avail- Capability able. In each category, the result is an assumed effective fire flow application rate in gallons per minute. The risk analysis for various target hazards pro- vided gpm demand calculations for each rated location. The calculated suppression capability (in gpm) and the gpm demand calculated for the risk can be compared for both initial attack and sustained attack. Providing a separate evaluation in each category allows attention to be directed specifically where a strength or weakness is detected . The best method of evaluating suppression capa- bility is by conducting full-scale evaluation exercises or by observing actual fire fighting operations. The persons performing the evaluation should make every effort to reflect actual response times and operational methods that would be used on the fireground. This may require the develop- ment of a script detailing the arrival times of different companies and the assignments they will be expected to perform upon arrival. When full-scale simulation exercises are not feas- ible, the evaluators must estimate the capabili- ties of the suppression forces. This may involve writing a "tactical deployment script" around the expected personnel and equipment, taking into account their expected arrival sequence and the evaluator's best estimate of their capabilities. This should be verified by some basic field exercises, whenever possible. Evaluation The evaluation of initial attack capability of is best accomplished by having a full, initial Initial alarm assignment perform these evolutions in a Attack realistic setting, such as a training academy Capability drill yard. Time must be factored into the prob- lem by allowing companies to begin action after a NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-7 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH time equivalent to their response time to the assumed location. Hoselines should be laid, con- nected, and charged, while personnel are assigned to perform all of the required functions. At the 10 -minute point, all action should be stopped and evaluated. The evaluation is based on gallons per minute effectively applied to combat the fire within 10 minutes after the alarm is received. Since effec- tive, initial attack fire fighting requires more than the application of water on the fire, addi- tional assignments and tasks are identified that must be fulfilled by the initial attack force. Failure to assign personnel and equipment to nec- essary tasks results in a deduction of gallons per minute from the effective flow to compensate. The net figure is the "effective initial attack gpm flow." • Hoselines - Attack lines must be stretched 200 feet from apparatus and placed in operation by two personnel with full protective clothing, using SCBA. Both personnel must stay with the line to provide for mobility. a. 1 1/2-inch lines--100 gpm- b. 1 3/4- inch lines--150 gpm c. 2-inch lines--200 gpm d. 2 1/2-inch lines--250 gpm (requires 3 personnel) Attack lines must be supported by an uninter- rupted water supply. A pump operator must be assigned for each pumper supplying water, unless automatic controls are provided. • Search and Rescue - Sufficient personnel must be assigned to perform search and rescue in any occupied structures. A minimum of two personnel must be assigned. Additional teams of two personnel should be assigned for each 2,000 square feet of occupied area subject to smoke, heat, or fire. High occupancy areas may require additional personnel for this function. _^ NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-8 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Support Functions - At least one firefighter must be ass igned to perform forcible entry, utility control, and related support functions for each handline placed in operation. Ventilation - At least two personnel must be assigned to perform ventilation ahead of ini- tial attack. When roof-top ventilation is indicated, these personnel must be able to reach the roof (via ladders) and have primary ventilation accomplished within the 10-minute time frame. Command - At least one individual must be assigned as the fireground commander to direct operations. This person should not be- engaged in any other fire fighting functions. An effective initial attack of 150 gpra may be reasonable for some locations, such as small single- family dwellings. For multistory occu- pancies, an initial attack of 350 or 400 gpm may be required. Very few fire departments can pro- vide more than 500 gpn as an initial attack within a 10-minute time period. The evaluation must reflect the nature of the hazard and the consequences of an ineffective initial attack. An inadequate initial attack infers that the fire will probably grow to fully involve the defined fire area, requiring a sustained attack at the calculated fire flow rate to control the situation. There is a significant possibility that the fire may have already surpassed the capability of a strong initial attack by the time firefighters arrive. Whatever the circumstances, we must as- sume that the fire could potentially reach the "full involvement" stage. Strong initial attack reduces the probability that the fire will reach this stage and/or buys time to provide for rescue and evacuation. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-9 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Standard Time-Temperature Curve (Ref: NFPA Handbook, 14th Ed., P. 6-80) / f*~ / / Determining Points for Curve 1000 Fat 5 Mm 1300°F at 10 Mm 1550 "F at 30 Mm 1700"F at 1 Hr 1850"F at 2 Hr. 2000 J F at 4 Hr 2300 "F at 8 Hr Time in Hrs. Time This chart illustrates the growth of fire pro- Temperature duced temperatures during the course of a Curve structural test fire. These time/ temperature relationships are based on field experiments and actual fires. The principal point to note is the rapid initial buildup and slow, steady climb after that. At 10 minutes a temperature of 1300° F can be expected to exist at the ceiling. Flashover, the point at which all combustible surfaces of a room blast into flame at once, can be expected to occur between 800° F and 1000° F. As can be seen on the chart these conditions can be expected to occur within 15 minutes after ignition. Frequent- ly, the first attack lines are getting into position about 15 minutes into the fire the point at which flashover can occur. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-10 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH G.P.M.-MODE RELATIONSHIP TIME GPM/tlode Of all the restraints placed on the fire incident lationship manager, the most basic is the amount of fire which can be attacked with the gallons per minute flow available. If the available flow is equal to or greater than the need, an aggressive offense can be mounted. When the flow requirements exceed that which can be provided, a defensive posture must be assumed. In the diagram above we see that from the in- stant of ignition to final extinguishment a certain amount of water can extinguish the fire. This volume of water varies with the progress of the fire. As the fire growth curve increases, the amount of water required increases. If a line is drawn from the gallons- per-minute column on the lift until it inter- sects the fire growth curve, the amount of fire which can be controlled by that amount of water will be indicated. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-11 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH If upon arrival it is discovered that a flow of 750 gallons per minute is required and the available flow is only 500 gallons per minute, it is obvious that a defensive mode is indi- cated. Additional resources must be summoned if an offensive mode is desired. Because the fire has not reached its maximum intensity, it will continue to grow and require more and more water. The fire manager must recognize this and consider it when additional resources are requested. If at the time of arrival a deficit of 250 gpm existed, a request for an additional 250 gpm will still require a de- fensive mode because the fire will have contin- ued to grow and will require more than 750 gpm by the time the additional lines are in place. Evaluation The objective of full, sustained-attack strategy of is to deliver the maximum fire attack possible in Sustained a defensive configuration, utilizing master Attack and large handlines. This assumes total involve- Capability ment of the fire building (or buildings) with all fire department efforts directed toward containing and controlling the flames to prevent further spread. The 30-minute time frame is selected to provide a reasonable amount of time for rein- forcements to respond, after the initial assign- ment, and to be placed in action. This strategy is dependent upon a reliable water supply to sustain a high volume flow for extended periods. It also requires the deployment of per- sonnel and equipment for their maximum delivery capability. Due to the logistics involved, it may not be feasible to conduct a large-scale exercise to test the full gpm fire flow capability. It may be necessary to judge the water supply capacity through standard test methods and to judge fire department capability on the performance of repre- sentative companies. Records of major fires that have occurred in the past may be helpful in making this determination. Full gpm fire flow assumes that all efforts on the scene of a fire will be directed toward developing a high volume suppression effort. In real situations, however, major commitments may be made to search and rescue or other functions that prove to be more critical than water application at the particular incident. Since it is unlikely NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-12 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH that any one incident would call for maximum ef- fort in all facets of fire fighting at the same time, maximum gpm fire flow capability is taken as a representative activity to evaluate fire- ground operational capability. In some cases, the student may want to measure the fire department's capability in a different type of scenario (i.e., rescue capability at a nursing home or the ability to support interior high-rise fire fighting opera- tions). These decisions are highly subjective and may be utilized by the students according to their local circumstances. Procedure for Estimation of Full GPM Fire Flow 1 . Evaluate the water supply available through public mains and hydrants, drafting sources, other storage supplies, and/or tanker shuttles that can be placed in operation within 30 minutes. The fire department cannot deliver more water than is readily available. 2. Utilizing the maximum firefighting resources (including mutual aid, automatic aid, re- serves, etc.) that can respond and be placed in action within 30 minutes, calculate the maximum gpm flow that can be applied with master stream devices and handlines. Note: water supply volume must be available from Step 1 . 3. A fireground command system and communi- cations must be in place to facilitate co- ordinated operations. The evaluation must be based on a logical strategic deployment of resources around the assumed target hazard-- not simply an exercise in throwing water up in the air. 4. The deployment of personnel and equipment should be plotted on a fireground map, taking into account personnel and equipment assign- ments, capabilities, response times, and set- up times. The objective is to deliver the greatest possible gpm flow within 30 minutes. 5. In the evaluation, the need for specialized equipment should be considered (aerial de- vices, foam equipment, etc.). Where these are needed and not available, an obvious deficiency is pointed out to those making evaluation. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-13 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH A "fully involved" situation would suggest that all of the contents would be destroyed by the fire and any remaining occupants would be lost. Depending on the construction, an adequate sus- tained attack could possibly "save" the structure. In some cases, the entire structure and contents might simply be written off as unsalvageable when the fire has reached this stage. The protection of exposures might be the only significant fire- ground priority. The ability of the fire department to provide a sustained attack equal to the calculated fire flow demand for the hazard indicates that the fire should be successfully confined, whether or not the target hazard itself is totally destroyed. If the target hazard is totally isolated from exposures, it may not make any difference whether or not the calculated fire flow can be delivered. If all of the occupants are out, how important is it to save the building? Once the target hazard is lost, the important considerations are the exposures. The ability to provide the calculated fire flow is significant only as it relates to the__consequences of not providing it. Between A great deal of very significant fireground Initial activity takes place between the extremes of Attack initial attack and the maximum flow capability of and sustained attack. The fire department reinforces Sustained the initial attack by attempting to limit the Attack spread of the fire before it reaches "full in- volvement." These two extremes are used simply as benchmarks, examining a fire department's suppres- sion capability in two different configurations, which suggest effectiveness under varying circum- stances . Inferences The evaluation of initial attack capability and From sustained attack capability gives an indication Evaluation of how well the fire suppression forces are pre- pared to deal with the target hazards that they protect. A serious deficiency in either category should identify the potential need for improve- ments. This may direct responsible officers to consider improvements in equipment, staffing, operating procedures, or other factors that could improve performance. It could also identify weak- nesses in the water supply that require attention. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-14 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Generally, this process is valuable in identi- fying weaknesses in the fire department's ability to deal with predictable situations in the exist- ing environment. These may also lead to different strategies that could reduce the hazard level in the community. These concepts are discussed in the next unit. The evaluation of suppression capability should be weighed in relation to the nature of the risk, in addition to the gpra fire flow demand calcu- lations . The evaluation of fire suppression capability can provide a measure of how well the fire department is prepared to engage in effective fireground operations. While this is highly dependent upon the resource levels of a department-- in terms of personnel, equipment, and response times--it also reflects on the training and standard operating procedures employed. Adjustments in training and procedures may substantially improve performance. NFPA A standard evaluation method for initial attack 1410 capabilities presented is NFPA Standard 1410-- Initial Fire Attack. This standard focuses on the ability to deliver 400 gpra with two attack lines and a larger backup line within a reasonable time. The water application capability is an important aspect of initial fireground operations, but should be considered in relation to the need for search and rescue, ventilation, forcible entry, and other support functions that must be carried out simultaneously. The need to perform these necessary functions compromises the ability to place attack hoselines in operation when per- sonnel resources on the fireground are limited. The evaluation method in NFPA 1410 may be used as a starting point in estimating the 10-minute initial attack capability of a fire department, with adjustments to allow for these additional necessary functions. The personnel required to perform these other functions must be in addition to those used for placing hoselines in action (or they must be subtracted from the number of person- nel available for working with hoselines) . This provides an evaluation measure in terms of gpm, which can be effectively applied, while simul- taneously providing fireground command, search NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4 _ 15 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH and rescue, ventilation, forcible entry, and support functions with the initial attack force. The ability to apply heavy flow rate fire attack with master stream appliances and large handlines is similarly related to equipment, procedures, training, personnel available, and water supply. Training Good procedures and regular training should be Needed directed to maximize the capability of the avail- able manpower and equipment. While the evaluation results may point to obviously needed adjustments in personnel and equipment, the most effective utilization of available resources may provide a significant improvement in total firefighting capability. The training function should focus on all areas of fireground operations, considering changes in equipment and resource levels in addition to training and procedures. Uhen evaluating the current capability of the fire suppression forces, attention should be directed to the maximization of capabilities at the available resource levels, in addition to the impact of changing resource levels . NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4 _ 16 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH CONCORD COLLEGE Concord College sits on a beautiful campus, 2 miles from the center of town. Its 500-acre campus is considered a showplace of American college architecture today. The campus buildings range in age from 3 to 80 years and are kept in elegant condition by the college's high endowments, generous alumni and steep tuition rates. Almost 3,600 students live in the dormitories on campus. These dorms range from an 8-story fire-resistive building constructed in 1977 to a series of three-story edifices constructed in the 1920' s. The older dorms are ordinary construction (brick-wood joisted) and feature long corridors with rooms on both sides. Approximately 10 years ago, wired-glass partitions were installed on each floor to separate the stairs from the corridors, but many of the doors are habitually wedged ooen by the residents to provide better ventilation. Transoms over the room doors are also kept open for the same purpose. Manually activated fire alarm systems were installed at the same time as the stairway partitions. Classroom and administrative buildings on campus are of similar vintage and construction as the dorms. The fronts of the buildings are dominated by white columns, and the backs of most buildings feature traditional fire escapes. Automatic sprinklers have been installed in the basements of a few of the larger buildings. The buildings erected since 1968 have dry standpipes in the stairways. The only fire protection equipment in most areas is comprised of pressurized water extinguishers and 1-1/2-inch hose cabinets . The campus is served by an extension of the town's water system. An 3- inch line feeds a loop around the campus and hydrants are conveniently located. The water supply was recently tested at 2,375 gpm. The campus is patrolled at night by a security force of three roving personnel and one supervisor. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-17 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Grace Hall CONCORD COLLEGE cm Back Stairs Fire Escape 3 STORIES ORDINARY CONSTRUCTION 13034 sq, ft, PER FLOO BUILT IN 1927 DORMITORY OCCUPANCY 2 STUDENTS PER ROOM 36 ROOMS PER FLOOR EACH ROOM IS 19'x12' (228 sq, ft,) CEILINGS ARE 10' HIGH CORRIDORS ARE 10' WIDE national fire academy 4-18 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH HILLSIDE VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT The HilLside Volunteer Fire Department protects a town of 7,250 population and a surrounding area of 80 square miles that is mostly rural, Most of the 46 members of the depart- ment live and work within a 1-mile radius of the fire station and respond to alarms from their radio pagers and/or the siren on the firehouse. The average response on a structural alarm is 30 members and the first pumper is usually on the street in less than 2 minutes. Response time within the town averages less than 5 minutes-- from the time the alarm is received until the first company is on the scene. The department operates two first-line 1,000-gpm pumpers with 750-gallon tanks; a 3,000-gallon tanker with a 500-gpm pump and a portable tank; a well-equipped rescue squad truck; and a mini-pumper. Two older 750-gpm pumps are also kept in reserve. Mutual aid is available from Harbrook, 12 miles away, that can respond with a 1,000-gpm pumper and 4,000-gallon tanker, staffed by eight volunteers. Woodside can respond from 16 miles away with two 750-gpm pumpers and ten firefighters; while Fairwell responds from 19 miles away with a 1,250-gpm pumper, a 2,000-gallon tanker, and eight firefighters. The closest aerial device is the snorkel from Elmwood , 21 miles west, that has a 1, 500-gpm pump on board and usually comes with a crew of six volunteers. All of the departments are dispatched by the county com- munications center in Elmwood, and all units are equipped with common radio frequencies. The mutual aid system is well coordinated and has been in operation for over 30 years. All of the volunteer firefighters are trained and certified by the state fire training organization, and all of the apparatus is in good condition. Most of the departments use 4- inch supply hose and preconnected lines , and all apparatus are well equipped with hand tools and breathing apparatus. There is a water system in the town that can supply 3,500 gpm for one hour, and hydrants are installed on a regular basis. Beyond the limits of the town, the water supply depends on tankers and drafting sources. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-19 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INITIAL ATTACK TACTICAL DEPLOYMENT STRATEGY FOR HILLSIDE VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT'S ATTACK ON GRACE HALL A fire in a second- floor dorm room erupted at 0230 hours. The room is well involved and fire has extended to the corridor on the second floor by the time the first engine arrives . The chief arrives on Engine 1 and assumes command. He orders Engine 1 to lay a 4-inch line to the front of the building and advance a 2-inch line to the second floor. Engine 2 is ordered to lay a line to the rear and take a 2-inch attack line up the back stairway. All other personnel on these companies, plus the squad and mini-punper crews, are assigned to search and rescue on the second floor due to the high life hazard. The chief is counting on a high GPM flow rate and the heavy commitment to search and rescue as the best tactics for this situation, consciously neglecting ventilation and support functions. Response The initial attack response sequence is as follows Unit Arr ival T ime Personnel E1 0236 6 E2 0237 6 SQ1 0238 6 MINI 1 0239 3 TANKER 1 0242 2 E3 0243 4 E4 0245 3 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-20 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INITIAL ATTACK STRATEGIC DEPLOYMENT CHART FOR HILLSIDE VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT'S ATTACK ON GRACE HALL UNIT ASSIGNMENT PERSONNEL GPM E-l Command 1 Pump operator 1 2" Attack line 2 200 Search & Rescue E-2 Pump operator 1 2" Attack line 2 200 Search & Rescue 3 Sql Search & Rescue M1 Search & Rescue NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-21 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INITIAL ATTACK CAPABILITY RATING FORM All personnel must be provided with full protective clothing and SCBA. Personnel without proper equipment do not receive any credit. 1 . Attack Lines in Operation x 1-1/2" at 100 gpm = gpm x 1-3/4" at 150 gpm = + gpm x 2" at 200 gpm = + gpm x 2-1/2" at 250 gpm = + gpm Total GPM Flowing 2. Uater Supply Is adequate uninterrupted water supply in position to maintain total gpm flowing? If not, reduce to a flow which is assured as reliable. A pump operator must be assigned for each apparatus delivering water. Note: Tanker supply is acceptable when shuttle system is in place to maintain the total gpm flowing or if sufficient supply can be delivered to maintain the attack for 30 minutes. Reliable GPM Flowing 3. Search and Rescue Are required number of personnel assigned to perform search and rescue? Reduce gpm flowing by 50 gpm for each person not assigned. Required: Assigned: Reduction: gpm GPM Flowing NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-23 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Support Functions Are personnel assigned to perform necessary support functions? Reduce gpm flowing by 50 gpra for each person not assigned. Required: Assigned: Reduction: gpm GPU Flowing Ventilation Was ventilation team assigned and in position to accom- plish ventilation within 10 minutes? If not, deduct 100 gpm. Required: Assigned: Reduction: gpm GPM Flowing Command and Control Is fireground commander in position and in control of operations? If not, reduce gpm flowing by 50%. Required: Assigned: Reduction: Gpm Effective Initial Attack GPM Flow NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-24 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH SUSTAINED ATTACK TACTICAL DEPLOYMENT STRATEGY FOR HILLSIDE VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT'S ATTACK ON GRACE HALL Ue will assume that the entire Hillside Volunteer Fire Department and the mutual aid from Harbrook and Uoodside can respond and be placed in operation within 30 minutes. The limiting factor is going to be the 2,375 gpm water supply available on campus. Adequate personnel and equipment are available to take full advantage of the flow. The chief has the options of a tanker shuttle, drafting sources, or a relay operation to increase the flow to the 3,500 gpm demand needed . While any of these options are possible, none of them could be accomplished within the 30 -minute time frame. The additional mutual aid units which are responding could probably increase the flow to 3,500 gpm. The estimated GPM flowing at the 30-minute time limit is 2,375 gpm or 68% of the calculated demand. There are no aerial devices on the scene to help protect Che exposures at this tine. The first aerial apparatus would not arrive for 10 more minutes and would probably not be in operation until at least 50 minutes after the inital alarm. Given these considerations, what do you think? 1 . Can the fire building be saved? 2. Can the exposures be saved? 3. Can the occupants be saved? NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER , oe 4-25 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH SHALL GROUP ACTLVITY DIRECTIONS For the next hour and 20 minutes you will be involved in a small group activity applying the information and evaluation tools you have just learned. Your student manual for this unit contains the set of three scenarios which you used in Unit III. In addition there are descriptions of five fire departments. Your group will work with the same scenario and target hazzard buildings which you used in the last unit. Your instructor will assign a fire department which will provide the suppression capability to combat the scenario fire. Following the fire department descriptions is a set of worksheets needed to complete the following assignments. 1 . Complete the strategy chart for the initial attack. 2. Diagram the initial attack on the drawing provided. 3. Complete the initial attack rating form. 4. Complete the strategy chart for the sustained attack. 5. Diagram the sustained attack using the drawing provided. 6. Calculate the maximum G.P.M. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER , nn 4-27 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BEARPAU SHOE COMPANY The Bearpaw Shoe Conpany has been one of the largest indus- tries in your area for over 75 years. Its complex of two- and three-story buildings is crowded into the heart of the industrial area, bordering on the central business district. Within the last 10 years, shoe production has declined sig- nificantly and parts of the complex have been sold and rented to a variety of other companies. The number of employees has remained about the same, however. In addition to the shoe company, parts of the complex are now occupied by a manufacturer of styrofoam cups, a tire distributor, a swimming pool supply company, a cabinet shop, a furniture wholesaler, and a truck body manufacturer. Each of these occupants has a portion of the complex ranging from a whole wing to part of a floor. The buildings were constructed in the early 1900 ' s , some of heavy timber and some of fire-resistive construction. All of the buildings have automatic sprinklers, supplied by an elevated water tank and a steam-driven, 1,500-gpm fire pump. The steam for the fire pump comes from the shoe factory's main boilers that used to run continuously. Now they are shut down at night and on weekends and it takes the plant engineer 15 minutes to get them fired up again. There is a system of yard hydrants with a good water sup- ply, connected to the private supply and a connection to the public water system. The public water system can deliver 1,250 gpm in this area of the city at 20 psi residual pressure. Static pressure is 50 psi. The complex is separated from the buildings on Commercial Street by a 20-foot wide alley. The three-and four-story buildings on Commercial street contain a variety of stores and businesses, many with apartments on the upper floors. Over the years, the plant's sprinkler system and fire bri- gade have controlled numerous fires without serious damage. The fire brigade was disbanded 5 years ago and since that time the public fire department has responded to a few small fires, each controlled by one sprinkler head. Your fire inspector has just returned from making an inspec- tion of. the property and informed you about the lack of steam for the boiler at night and on weekends. He is also concerned about the adequacy of the fixed fire protection in view of the changing occupancy. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4_29 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ACADEMY MOTEL and FORT HILLIS HOTEL Several major loss-of-life fires in hotels and motels have received heavy exposure in the news media over the last 5 years. A five-death fire in a city 200 miles away has finally caught the attention of your Mayor, who calls to ask about the vulnerability of your community to this type of disaster. You have been waiting for this opportunity to get your foot in the door for over 6 months—when you returned from a National Fire Academy course, " Fire Risk Analysis: A Systems Approach ." At your first meeting with the Mayor, you get to show her the risk analysis you have done on the hotels and motels in your community and the assessment of your current sup- pression capability. The Mayor gives you the green light to make proposals for changes to the entire council at a public meeting. You have 30 days to prepare. The hotels and motels in your community fall into several categories, but you have identified two groups that present an exceptional risk. Your assessment is reinforced by nationally reported experience with these types of buildings and a few "close calls" locally. While you have not had any hotel or motel deaths in your community lately, you have had one or two fires each year that could have been much worse with just slightly different circumstances. The first of two types of high risk occupancies that you have identified is the two-story enclosed corridor motel. You have such a motel, belonging to a major chain. This one has eight sections, linked together around a central courtyard having a swimming pool and recreation area. The construction is brick outer walls with wood partitions and floor/roof assemblies. The sections are divided by firewalls, with fire doors dividing the interior corridors at the firewalls. The fire doors are held open with 180°F fusible links. Each wing has at least one stairway join- ing the first and second floors. You are aware of several cases where the fire walls have been penetrated in the attic spaces to run air ducts or electrical lines between sections . The rooms open onto the central corridors from both sides, with an average of 60 rooms between firewalls (30 on each floor) . The room doors are solid core wood and many of them have spring-loaded hinges that make them self-closing. This chain has installed battery-operated smoke detectors NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4 _ 31 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH in all their rooms, but this is not required by any code. Manually activated local fire alarm systems are required. The only fire fighting equipment required by code is extin- guishers mounted every 150 feet in the corridors. Some of the hotels have pressurized water units and some have 2A 10BC dry chemical units. Soft-drink machines and ice machines are installed under the stairs on the ground floor. Roll-away beds and maids' carts are often found in the corridors, although a small storage room is provided for them on each floor in each sect ion. These buildings were in compliance with the building code at the time of their construction. Changes in the code since that time required that corridor separation doors and room doors be self-closing and be kept closed at all times. Emergency lighting is now required in all exit corridors, and each room must have a smoke detector. These require- ments are not retroactive. The second type of high rise structure that creates some potential problems for you is the old Fort Hillis Hotel. It is typical in most respects. Built in 1911, it is ten stories tall, constructed with a concrete frame, and granite outer walls. It is considered a landmark and is on the National Registry of Historic Sites. There are 30 guest rooms per floor on the second through eighth floors. The ground floor and mezzanine include several meeting rooms, a ballroom, and two restaurants, all of which open onto the main lobby. The west end of the ninth floor contains a large ballroom that extends through the tenth floor. The remainder of the ninth floor contains the hotel offices and service areas, while four luxury suites occupy the remainder of the tenth floor. The corridors on each floor form a W-shaped pattern with a stairway on the end of each of three wings. These stairways were added in the early 1960 's and replaced old fire escapes. The stairs are enclosed by concrete on the outside walls and separated by wired-glass partition and door assemblies from the corridors. The doors are held open with fusible links . There are three elevators at the center of the building, and facing the elevator bank is a grand stairway extending from the lobby to the tenth floor. This stairway has marble steps, polished brass handrails, and polished oak paneling all the way up. This stairway is not separated from the corridors . NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4_ 32 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH The doors to the rooms are carved wood, without closers. When new locks were installed recently, the hotel paid over S 7 5 per door to match the antique faceplates around the locks. Each room has a transom to obtain air from the corridor. The basement, which is not sprinklered, contains a disco with an occupant capacity of 650. This is reached through an open stairway from the hotel lobby, although one exit door leads directly to a narrow outside stairway to the rear alley. In 1968, three hotel guests died in a fire on the fifth floor of this particular hotel. The fire started in a guest room and extended to the corridor. Twenty additional guests, four hotel employees, and eleven firefighters were overcome by smoke. Numerous rescues were made with ladders as smoke filled most of the building, but firefighters were successful in holding the fire to the room and a section of the corridor. At that time, officials praised the newly installed manual fire alarm system for alerting guests to the danger and promptly summoning firefighters through its direct connection to the fire department. The fire was extinguished by one 1-1/2-inch line from a hose cabinet and a 2-1/2-inch line from the dry standpipe in one of the exit stairway towers. The standpipes had been installed, along with the stairways and alarm system, during a major renovation project during 1960-1962. There was no building code at the time of the original construction. The renovation of 1962 brought it into compliance with the code in effect at that time, with several variances allowed to preserve the historic character of the building. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4 _ 33 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BOARDING HOUSE Along the river bank in your community are stately old homes, built 60 to 70 years ago by the wealthy. These two-and three-story homes are a variety of wood and brick construction and average about 2,500 square feet in floor area on each level. They line both sides of a tree-shaded street, some facing the river and others backing it. In the last 20 or 30 years, the original families moved away, selling out to people who made them into apartments and rooming houses. Gradually, this changed the complexion of the neighborhood. Uithin the last few years, many owners began to contract with the State Department of Social Welfare to take in the former residents of some institutions for the handicapped on a residential custodial care basis. These homes must be inspected and certified by the state, which has preempted local jurisdiction over these state-contracted boarding homes. Local officials are not even informed when these facilities are licensed, and generally find out about them when they respond to emergency medical service calls. The state requirements call for at least one single-station smoke alarm in the hall on each floor plus a manual pull station that is part of the local alarm. Heat detectors must be in each room. A solid-core wood door must be installed in each stairway at each floor level, and there must be at least two stairways. There may be up to four occupants in each room. Most of them have obvious physical or mental handicaps. A single home may contain 30 to 50 occupants. The home is required to have at least one responsible person on duty at all times and fire drills must be held at least every 90 days. State inspectors check the homes annually to renew their permits and require the fire alarm system and extinguishers to be serviced each year. The telephone number of the local fire department must be posted adjacent to each telephone. SITUATION The Captain from Engine 3 returned from an EMS call at one of the homes and wrote a letter to the editor of the local newspaper proclaiming that "a grave hazard exists and nobody seems to care." Since the morning edition was delivered, you have been deluged with telephone calls asking if the allegations are true and what you propose to do about them. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4.35 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH PLUGTOWN FIRE DEPARTMENT The Plugtown Fire Department protects an urban population of 85,000. The department has 100 career employees and operates seven engine companies, two ladder companies, and one rescue company. Average staffing is one officer and two firefighters on five of the engine companies, while the other two engines and the rescue always have an officer and three firefighters. The ladder companies are assigned three firefighters, but usually have only two due to holidays, vacation, and sick leave. The first alarm assignment to target hazards is three engines, one ladder, and the rescue, along with the on-duty battalion chief. The average response time profile after dispatch is: 1st Engine - 3.4 minutes 2nd Engine - 4.2 minutes 3rd Engine - 4.5 minutes Ladder - 4.5 minutes Rescue - 5.1 minutes Alarms are transmitted to stations by tone-activated radio. The normal time from receipt of a call until units are on the street is 2 minutes and 3 seconds. Off-duty personnel can be called back in case of a major fire, but this requires the dispatcher to call each indi- vidual person by telephone. Called-back personnel can place three, reserve engines and one ladder in service. Call-back is only used about once each year, and it takes at least 25 minutes to place a reserve company in service. Mutual aid is available on request from three adjoining departments. These departments can send up to three additional engine companies and two ladder companies, with an average response time of 14 minutes. These companies respond with a crew of either three or four. There are no common radio channels, and the equipment, training, and standard operating procedures are all different. Mutual aid may be called for major fires, but it is utilized only on large-scale operations. There are hydrants located in all areas of the city and the system is designed to supply a minimunm of 5,000 gpm in all nonresidential areas. In residential areas, a flow of 1,500 gpm is assured, while hydrants in the central business district can supply over 7,500 gpm. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4 . 37 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Plugtown Fire Department Profile Response Time Personnel Engine 2 5.4 m in. 3 Engine 3 6.2 min. 3 Engine 1 6.5 min. 4 Ladder 1 6.5 min. 2 Rescue 1 7 . 1 min. 4 Battalion 1 7 . 1 min. 1 T7 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-38 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH HAZEL COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT The Hazel County Fire Deparment is comprised of 39 formerly independent volunteer companies serving a series of suburban areas adjacenC to a large city. The county provides career personnel to staff companies on weekdays, while most of the volunteers are at work in the city and some paid drivers at night. On weekends, the department operates almost entirely with volunteers. The 39 volunteer companies operate 73 first-line pumpers, 21 ladder trucks, 6 heavy squad companies, 28 ambulances, and a variety of specialized equipment. Each company has a volunteer chief, deputy chief, and a full complement of officers. At night and on weekends, there are sufficient volunteers sleeping in or standing by at each station to place at least two pieces of apparatus on the street immedi-' ately, and often a third full crew can respond within 3 to 4 minutes after an alarm. A full structural alarm at these times can bring a response of seven engines, two ladders, and a squad with five or six volunteers on each vehicle. The first unit usually arrives within 3.5 minutes and the entire assignment can be on the scene in less than 6 minutes. Several command officers also respond. During weekdays , the county provides enough personnel to staff one vehicle out of each station with a crew of three or four (averages 3.5 minutes). This brings a normal first- alarm response of 21 personnel on three engines, two ladder trucks, and a squad. (Response times do not change.) A career battalion chief also responds, but may be up to 8 minutes away. Very few, if any, volunteers respond during these hours. Alarms are transmitted by a central communications center that takes an average of 90 seconds to process a call. The fully integrated radio system provides complete compati- bility with all units in the county and with surrounding jurisdictions. Automatic-aid and mutual-aid agreements provide integrated response and almost unlimited resources in the event of a major incident. At least 20 companies are within 20 minutes travel time of most areas. The water supply varies from less than 1,000 gpm in a few remote areas to over 10,000 gpm in a heavy industrial area. Water supply is generally adequate for the areas protected. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-39 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Day Night: Hazel County Fire Department Profile Ri esponse Time Personnel Engine 11 5 3 Ladder 1 5.5 4 Engine 21 6 4 Engine 31 7 3 Ladder 3 7.5 3 Squad 4 +Battalion Ch: 8 ief 4 21 1 Engine 11 5 5 Ladder 1 5.5 6 Engine 21 6 6 Engine 12 6.5 5 Engine 31 7 5 Ladder 3 7.5 6 Engine 22 7.5 5 Squad 4 8 6 Engine 13 8 5 Engine 32 9 +Chief Officers 5 54 5 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-40 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FIREBIRD FIRE DEPARTMENT The Firebird Fire Department protects a modern city of 300,000 population with 37 engine companies, II ladder companies, and 5 rescue companies. The engine and ladder companies are staffed with four personnel at all times, while the rescues always have two firefighter/paramedics. Four command officers, with aides, are on duty at all times . The normal response to a reported, working fire in a target hazard is four engine companies, two ladders, and a rescue, with two command officers. The response time profile is: 1st Engine 3.4 minutes 2nd Engine 4.5 minutes 3rd Engine 5.0 minutes 1st Ladder 5.0 minutes 1st Command Officer 5.0 minutes 4th Engine 6.5 minutes 2nd Ladder 7.0 minutes 2nd Command Officer 7.5 minutes Alarms are dispatched by a computer-aided dispatch system that takes 1 minute and 15 seconds to process an alarm and dispatch the assignment. Responses are integrated with adjoining jurisdictions on an automatic-aid basis with a shared dispatch center. Most structure fires are dispatched with an initial assign- ment of two engines, one ladder, and one command officer. This may be upgraded to the heavy assignment by the dis- patcher or by the first arriving unit. If the heavy assign- ment is not requested until the arrival of the first unit, none of the additional units arrive within the 10-minute limit. The amount of equipment available for major situations is almost unlimited, and water supply is not a problem. At most locations, 15 engine companies and 5 ladders can respond within 20 minutes. NOTE: Evaluate both heavy and light initial responses. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-41 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Light Heavy Firebird Fire Department Profile Response Time Personnel Engine 1 3.6 4 Engine 2 5.7 4 Ladder 1 6.2 4 Battalion Ch ief 1 6.2 2 T4 Engine 1 3.6 4 Engine 2 5.7 4 Ladder 1 6.2 4 Engine 3 6.2 4 Battalion Ch ief 1 6.2 2 Engine 4 7.8 4 Ladder 2 8.3 4 Battalion Ch ief 2 3.3 2 23" NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-42 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ARGO FIRE DEPARTMENT The \rgo Fire Department protects a city of 23,000 popula- tion and operates two fire stations. All personnel are full-time career firefighters. The normal duty shift oper- ates two pumpers, two mini-pumpers, and one ladder truck; with three personnel on each pumper, one on each mini-pumper and only a driver on the ladder truck. Two more pumpers and a snorkel are available to be operated by off-duty personnel on a call-back basis. Two deputy chiefs share command responsibilities on a rotating basis, responding from home at night. All of the on-duty personnel respond to alarms for target hazards, and all of the apparatus can be on the scene with- in 6 minutes of an alarm at any location in the city. The first pumper and mini-pumper usually arrive within 4 minutes of the initial call to the fire department. A second alarm brings all of the reserve apparatus with off-duty personnel. These units usually arrive within 12 minutes after the second alarm with an average of 15 per- sonnel. There are no mutual-aid departments within the 30- minute response- area. A few mutual-aid units can respond within 45 minutes. All of the pumpers are rated at 1,000 gpm. The water supply in the central part of the city is limited to 3,200 gpm and is severely restricted in some older areas of the community. Argo Fire Department Profile 1 Response Time Personnel Engine 4 3 Mini 1 4 1 Ladder 1 4.5 1 Engine 2 6 3 Mini 2 6 1 DC 8 1 TO NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-43 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH COLONIAL FIRE DEPARTMENT The Colonial Fire Department protects a large city with 42 engine companies, 21 ladder companies, and 2 rescue squads. Due to severe budget reductions over the last 5 years, crews have been reduced to three on engines and four on ladders and rescues. There are seven battalion chiefs on duty. All engine companies operate 1,000-gpm pumpers with 500- gallon tanks. The central alarm office takes 1.5 minutes to transmit alarms and dispatches three engines, two ladders, and one rescue to target hazards, under the command of a battalion chief. Traffic problems result in an average response time of 4.5 minutes for the first engine company and 5 minutes for the first ladder. The remaining units arrive in less than 7 minutes. Apparatus is generally older and in poor condition, with a minimum of equipment. Multiple alarms can summon a virtually unlimited amount of assistance from the rest of the department and from mutual- aid departments. Ten engine companies and five ladder com- panies can respond to any location within 15 minutes. Water supply is generally adequate for any risk. Colonial Fire Department, Profile 1 Response Time Personnel Engine 6 3 Ladder 1 6.5 4 Engine 2 7 3 Engine 3 8.5 3 Ladder 2 8.5 4 Battal: Lon Ch ief 1 8.5 1 18 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4 _ 45 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH REMOTE COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT The Remote County Fire Department uses full-time, on-call, and call-back career personnel to protect a sparsely popu- lated area. Host of the county is rural, but there are pockets of development throughout most of the county. Initial response is usually two pumpers and a 3,000-gallon tanker, each with two personnel. The pumpers have 1,000- gallon tanks and 750-gpm pumps, since most of the area has no water supply system. (When hydrants are available, they are limited to 1,000 gpm or less.) Additional personnel are dispatched to structure fires, responding in their own vehicles or picking up additional apparatus. The average response times (after receipt of the call at the communications center) are: first pumper, 7 minutes; second pumper, 13 minutes; tanker, 15 minutes. Additional personnel response times are: two in 3 minutes; two in 10 minutes; and two in 12 minutes. A second alarm will duplicate the original response with an average travel time of 20 minutes for all responding person- nel and equipment (after the request for the second alarm) . Remote County Fire Department Profile 1 Response Time Personnel Engine 7 8 10 12 2 2 2/6 for initial attack 2 Engine 2 13 2 Tanker 1 15 2 Engine 3 27 2 Engine 4 27 2 Tanker 2 27 _2 18/+6 for initial attack NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER , In 4-47 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH SUPPRESSION CAPABILITY EXERCISE: DETERMINING INITIAL ATTACK GPri STRATEGIC DEPLOYMENT CHART UNIT ASSIGNMENT PERSONNEL GPMs TOTAL GPM APPLIED: NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-49 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Bearpaw Shoe Co. US 30 Commercial St. (NUMBERS IN CORNERS REPRESENT NUMBER OF FLOORS.) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-51 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BEARPAW SHOE CO. ENCLOSED BRIDGE AT 2ND FLOOR 120' 50' METAL SHED 20' HIGH USED FOR TIRE STORAGE 3 STORIES 9600 sq, ft, PER FLOOR HEAVY TIMBER CONSTRUCTION INCLUDES ONE OPEN STAIRWAY, ONE ENCLOSED STAIRWAY AND AN OPEN FREIGHT ELEVATOR CEILINGS ARE 14' HIGH GROUND FLOOR - TIRES SECOND FLOOR - STYROFOAM CUPS THIRD FLOOR - FURNITURE NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY OCCUPANCY STORAGE 4-52 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ACADEMY MOTEL 335' c 6 O) c m A-Wing O) c 6 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-53 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Motel D-Wing B£ 202 I D201 D204 D203 D206 D205 D208 D207 Fire wall D210 D209 D212 D211 D214 D213 D216 I |D215 D218 D217 D220 JD219 D222 JD221 D224 D223 D226 D225 D228 D227 D230 D229 m 11,750 sq. ft./floor Room : 330 sq. ft. (22 ft. x 15 ft.) Corridor : 6 ft. wide Ceilings : 8 ft. ^ Fire wall 50' NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-54 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH FORT HELLIS HOTEL (BLOCK PLAN) THREE-LEVEL PARKING GARAGE STANDPIPES m- — — fig & HOTEL MAIN ENTRANCE NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-55 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Fort Hillis Hotel Typical Floor ummc □pay \ / MP 12' Wide Corridors 25,680 Sq. Ft. Per Floor 12' Ceilings Avg. Room = 480 Sq. Ft. C20' x 24*) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-56 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH RIVERSIDE BOARDING HOME BLOCK PLAN NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-57 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH RIVERSIDE BOARDING HOME 2ND FLOOR IIIUIIlllllll EXTERI ■ • < Ik 3 3 1 / 3 / 3 A / 2 . \ 2 3 \ \ 95' \ \ 2 f ui 2 jjimiii IrTJititj \ 3 2 \ 1 DOWN \ 3 " BALCONY ORDINARY CONSTRUCTION ATTIC - 28500 cu, ft, 2 STORIES WITH ATTIC CORRIDORS ARE 5' WIDE USED FOR STORAGE MQST RQ0MS ARE 15 > x 1 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-5I NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH INITIAL ATTACK CAPABILITY RATING F0RI1 All personnel must be provided with full protective clothing and SCBA. Personnel without proper equipment do not receive any credit. 1 . Attack Lines in Operation x 1-1/2" at 100 gpm = gpm x 1-3/4" at 150 gpm = + gpm x 2" at 200 gpm = + gpm x 2-1/2" at 250 gpm = + gpm Total GPM Flowing 2. Water Supply Is adequate uninterrupted water supply in position to maintain total gpm flowing? If not, reduce to a flow which is assured as reliable. A pump operator must be assigned for each apparatus delivering water. Note: Tanker supply is acceptable when shuttle system is in place to maintain the total gpm flowing or if sufficient supply can be delivered to maintain the attack for 30 minutes. Reliable GPI1 Flowing 3. Search and Rescue Are required number of personnel assigned to perform search and rescue? Reduce gpm flowing by 50 gpm for each person not assigned. Required: Assigned: Reduction: gpm GPM Flowing NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER , cn 4-59 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Support Functions Are personnel assigned to perform necessary support functions? Reduce gpm flowing by 50 gpm for each person not assigned. Required: Assigned: Reduction: gpm GPM Flowing 5 . Ventilation Was ventilation team assigned and in position to accom- plish ventilation within 10 minutes? If not, deduct 100 gpm. Required: Assigned: Reduction: gpm GPM Flowing 6 . Command and Control Is fireground commander in position and in control of operations? If not, reduce gpm flowing by 50%. Required: Assigned: Reduction: Gpm Effective Initial Attack GPM Flow NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-60 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS. A SYSTEMS APPROACH SUPPRESSION CAPABILITY EXERCISE: DETERMINING SUSTAINED ATTACK GPM STRATEGIC DEPLOYMENT CHART UNIT ASSIGNMENT PERSONNEL GPMs TOTAL GPM APPLIED NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-61 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Bearpaw Shoe Co. US 30 Commercial St. (NUMBERS IN CORNERS REPRESENT NUMBER OF FLOORS.) NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-63 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH BEARPAW SHOE CO. ENCLOSED BRIDGE AT 2ND FLOOR 120' 50' METAL SHED 20' HIGH USED FOR TIRE STORAGE 3 STORIES 9600 sq, ft, PER FLOOR HEAVY TIMBER CONSTRUCTION INCLUDES ONE OPEN STAIRWAY, ONE ENCLOSED STAIRWAY AND AN OPEN FREIGHT ELEVATOR CEILINGS ARE 14' HIGH GROUND FLOOR - TIRES SECOND FLOOR - STYROFOAM CUPS THIRD FLOOR - FURNITURE NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY OCCUPANCY STORAGE 4-64 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH ACADEMY MOTEL 335' -H A-Wing NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-65 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Motel D-Wing Ef r 0202 I D201 D204 O203 D206 D205 D208 D207 Fire wall D210 D209 D212 D211 D214 D213 D216 | |d215 D218 D217 D220 JD219 D222 |D221 D2-24 D223 D226 D225 D228 D227 D230 D229 11,750 sq. ft./floor Room : 330 sq, ft. (22 ft. x 15 ft.) Corridor : 6 ft. wide Ceilings : 8 ft. X.. Fire wall 50' NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-66 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A' SYSTEMS APPROACH FORT HILLIS HOTEL (BLOCK PLAN) THREE-LEVEL PARKING GARAGE -^ STANDPIPES — f!fi — & HOTEL MAIN ENTRANCE NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-67 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Fort Hillis Hotel Typical Floor j ig PQ [Jig 12' Wide Corridors 25,680 Sq. Ft. Per Floor 12' Ceilings Avg. Room = 480 Sq. Ft. (20' x 24') NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH RIVERSIDE BOARDING HOME BLOCK PLAN IAT0- NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-69 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH RIVERSIDE BOARDING HOME 2ND FLOOR llllllllllll! EXTERI 50' - ' ■ ,1 1 3 J 3 t / 3 3 \ 2 ( 2 \ \ 3 95' \ \ 2 / „„ UP 2 3 \ H \ 2 I DOWN \ 4 " 3 BALCONY ORDINARY CONSTRUCTION ATTIC - 28500 cu, ft, 2 STORIES WITH ATTIC CORRIDORS ARE 5* WIDE USED FOR STORAGE MQST RQ0MS ARE 15> x NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4-70 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit IV: Fire Suppression in the Community I. Fire Suppression A. Definition B. Protection vs. suppression C. Relation to risk II. G.P.M. Delivery Capability A. Three relationships to suppression NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-71 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH B. Two uses III. Other Fireground Functions IV. Initial Attack Assessment A. Definition NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4-72 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH B. Criteria for assessment C. Time D. Attack Characteristics E. Attack priorities NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 4.73 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH F. Tine Temperature relationship G. Effective initial attack V. Sustained Attack Assessment A. Definition B. Characteristics NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 4 74 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH UNIT V UNPROTECTED RISK NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit V: Unprotected Risk Obj ect ives The participants will be able to : 1. Describe unprotected risk by comparing the degree of risk with the suppression system capability. 2. Describe and apply the concept of acceptable risk. Risk Unit II presented a method to evaluate the level Evaluation of risk associated with various locations within a community. This risk evaluation is useful in identifying the probability that a fire would occur in a particular location and estimating the pre- dictable consequence if a fire should occur. The evaluation of risk enables the fire department to determine what it could be called upon to deal with if and when an actual fire occurs. The applica- tion of this risk analysis at a number of dif- ferent locations should provide a profile of the community's need for fire suppression services. Suppression Unit III provided a method to evaluate the fire Capability suppression capability that is currently in place and available to the community. It also provided two views of suppression capability: one dealing with the immediate response capability and the other examining the uncontrolled spread of the fire bevond the identified fire area. Balance When the suppression capability is compared with or the risk, it will reveal either a balance or an Imbalance imbalance between the two. Ideally, the amount of suppression capability should just balance the identified risk--indicating that the fire depart- ment's forces are adequately staffed, trained, equipped, and capable of dealing with the pre- dictable fire situations in the community. It may reveal that a community is overprotected , that is, it has more fire suppression capability NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 5-1 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH than required to match the identified risks. If the fire department has more capability than it needs to do its job, resources are being wasted . Results are more likely to indicate that there are locations in the community where the risk exceeds the capability of the fire suppression forces. There are predictable fire situations that cannot be adequately handled by the available fire fighting resources. This introduces the concept of unprotected risk . Unprotected "Unprotected risk" is the degree of imbalance Risk that exists between the risk and the suppression capability. If the fire suppression forces avail- able to respond to a particular location are inadequate to deal with the predictable fire situation, that location is considered an unpro- tected risk. From the viewpoint of the fire department, unprotected risk exceeds the service delivery capability of the fire suppression forces available to the community. (Note: This definition does not conform to the definition of unprotected risk used by the insurance industry-- their definition refers to a nonsprinklered occu- pancy.) The fire chief may logically make the statement that' the fire department does not have the capability to deal with the predictable fire situations at the identified unprotected risk areas . Acceptable "Acceptable risk" is an expression of how much Risk unprotected risk the community is willing to tolerate. The identification of unprotected risk leads us directly to the primary question: How much risk is the community willing to accept? Nothing is ever 100% safe. Acceptable risk is not only the amount of unprotected risk that the community is willing to accept, but it can also be the amount of acceptable loss . Is the community willing to pay higher taxes, accept stricter code provisions, or make private investments to change the level of unprotected risk? Usually, the relationships between unprotected risk, ac- ceptable loss and the cost of increasing suppres- sion capability are not well understood because the choices have never been specifically stated. When the fire department budget is cut, the com- munity is making a value judgement about the level NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 5-2 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH of acceptable risk. to strengthen the sprinklers in high tempt to decrease t The fire department make thes n ak e r s . VJhen the fire marshal tries fire code requirements for rise buildings, it is an at- he level of acceptable risk. should be in a position to choices explicit for the decision- In order to examine the acceptability of unpro- tected risk, ask the question: Is this risk representative of the entire community? The un- protected risk may be in one unique location in the community. On the other hand, there may be numerous locations that reflect a similar risk level. Whether or not the level of unprotected risk is consistent across the community may influence the community's willingness to provide public fire suppression. The level of accept- able risk has implications in terms of life safety, property protection, and community consequences. Comparison The relationship between risk, suppression capa- Model bility and unprotected risk is illustrated by the following model: < UNPROTECTED -*— RISK RISK SUPPRESSION CAPABILITY In this case, the analysis of risk and suppres- sion capability reveals a gap. The difference between suppression capability and risk is un- protected risk. The existence of unprotected risk indicates that certain risks exceed the current fire suppression capability. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 5-3 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Goal of the fire protection managers is to mini- mize the imbalance between risk and suppression. Although it may not be possible to eliminate a catastrophic series of events, it is possible to prepare for the situations that are predictable. The imbalance between risk and suppression capa- bility is affected by changes in suppression capa- bility or changes in risk. Areas of potential improvements exist on both sides of the model. Suppression capability can be improved in a number of ways: more personnel, better training, im- proved strategy and tactics, new apparatus, dif- ferent fire station locations, mutual aid, auto- matic aid, improved communications, or a better water system. The possibilities are numerous. The risk is affected by changes in building and fire codes, by educating the public, by convincing property owners to make voluntary improvements by combatting arson, and by enforcing existing codes more effectively. UNPROTECTED RISK - DECREASE INCREASE RISK t t SUPPRESSION CAPABILITY Constraints It is not always possible for the fire protection manager to make improvements in all areas. The areas of potential change are constrained by budgets, politics, laws and legislation, public NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 5-4 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH pressure, awareness and acceptance, as well as effective management policies. The first step, however, is the identification of the available alternatives. These choices come into focus when the specific nature of the problem has been identified. The purpose of conducting a risk analysis and suppression capability analysis is to identify the areas of imbalance and to point out the problems that must be addressed. With an under- standing of the problems, we can begin to focus on the solutions. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 5 _ 5 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH SMALL GROUP ACTIVITY SUPPRESSION CAPABILITY—RISK COMPARISON 1 . Compare the suppression and the risk for your assigned target hazard. Write a statement describing your conclusion. 2. Discuss whether or not your assigned target hazard has a substantial unprotected risk. If so, describe it briefly. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 5-7 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH 3. List any obvious implications, e.g., are the unprotected risks acceptable to: • the fire department? • Che taxpayer? • the local politicians? • the building owners? NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit: V: Unprotected Risk I. Unprotected Risk A. Definition Implications II'. Acceptable Risk A. Definition B. Implications NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH C. Who determines acceptable risk' III. Comparison Model A. Description B. Risk Reducers C. Methods to increase suppression NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 5-10 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH UNIT VI THE COMMUNITY EXPERIENCE NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit VI: The Community Experience Ubj ec tives The participants will be able to: 1. Identify sources of data relevant to fire protection, 2. Define the concept of establishing base line data 3. Describe the criteria used in measuring effectiveness, Weed It has been said that many fire protection for managers decide what they want to do and then go Analysis about gathering information that will justify their proposed course of action as the only way to go. Whether it is true or not, it points out the need to objectively collect honest information that will provide accurate knowledge from which good decisions can be formulated. Inaccurate or distorted data will lead to inaccurate decisions. When data is relatively comprehensive and intelli- gently used, it will likely lead to productive decisions . The aim of this module is to introduce basic con- cepts of gathering and analyzing data. Emphasis is placed on the philosophy that data should be as accurate as possible and honestly and objec- tively interpreted to provide a true picture of the community and its problems. Experience In earlier sections of this course, fire risk was defined and compared to the potential capacity of present fire protection forces in coping with the community's estimated vulnerability to fire. Also important in measuring risk is the history of losses and the degree of success of fire protect- ion efforts in dealing with actual fires. This experience can provide knowledge and understanding based upon the results of past practices. Data Facts and figures can be identified, accumulated and organized to describe past experience. In other words, data can provide quantification of experience . NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 6_1 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Base Line As new programs are developed and implemented, it Data will be important to measure their success in reaching the desired results. As objectives are formulated, time, quality, and quantity measure- ments of success will need to be established. The data accumulated prior to implementation can serve as the base line for measuring success. Base line data provides the "where we are now" and the objectives project "where we want to be." A comparison can determine the degree of success of a selected program. Base Year Base line data may reflect the experience of many Data years of past history while base year data re- flects the period of time that will be used as a base measurement for future evaluations. Effectiveness The question of effectiveness is a fundamental issue. We constantly ask ourselves whether what we are doing is effective in achieving its de- sired results. The first step in evaluating effectiveness is to clearly identify desired results . Desired One of the basic goals of the fire department is Results to save lives and property. While everyone agrees that these are desirable outcomes, we do not have any measurement system attached to them. How many lives and how much property do we need to save? How much can we afford to lose? The concept of effectiveness involves applying some sort of measurement or value system to the results of what we do. These may range from very specific quantitative measures to some fairly intangible perceptions. Do we make inspections to enforce the fire code or to prevent fires? Is the intended outcome of a fire prevention program measured in the number of violations corrected or in the number of fires prevented? Sometimes we have to use indirect measurements, because we can't measure the desired outcome directly. We may not know with any certainty whether or not the program prevented any fires, but we can see a reduction in the fire rate, fewer fires in the occupancies which were inspected (compared to those which were not NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 6-2 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH inspected) and a number of code violations which were corrected. The effectiveness of a community's fire protection efforts can be very difficult to estimate until desired results are identified and measured. Cost COST introduces a second concept of measurements. While effectiveness only involves whether or not we achieve our desired results, cost involves the value of the resources we expend trying to reach those results. The two measures are indepen- dent—we can have high costs or low costs, whether we are very effective or totally ineffective. To estimate the cost, a value is assigned to every- thing that goes into our activities. The cost includes the direct expenditures (salaries and materials), as well as the indirect costs (time, opportunity). In many cases, a dollar value can be assigned to everything involved in the calcu- lation. The cost of fire protection includes many different items: o The cost of maintaining the fire department, o The cost of building fire protection into buildings (as required by codes), o The cost of providing adequate fire flows through a public water system, o The cost of fire insurance premiums. In a similar manner, a value can be associated with UNdesirable results of fires: o Property loss. o Business interruption losses. o The costs of deaths and injuries (although this is highly controversial, lawyers special- ize in it). Relationship Many times, however, it is impossible to place a of Cost To cost on what would happen without the protection Effectiveness provided. The value of what is lost is known, but often the value of what is saved is not known. The value of what is saved is the missing element needed to evaluate effectiveness. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 6 ~ 3 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH fficiency The third basic concept is EFFICIENCY. Effic- iency is the comparision of the value of the re- sults with the costs of achieving them. Mathe- matically, efficiency is expressed as a ratio of OUTPUTS to INPUTS. In terms of dollars, the dollar value of what is achieved is divided by the cost of doing it. If the cost of operating a fire prevention program is SI million and the program resulted in a reduc- tion of $1.5 million in losses, we could say that it had an efficiency rating of 150%. ($1.5 million [results] x 100 $1.0 million [costs]) If the same program only resulted in a $750,000 reduction in losses, it was 75% efficient. (Unfortunately we often don't have those costs available at our fingertips.) A measure of effeciency answers the question: Are we doing the best that we can with the resources that are available to us? A basic goal of the fire manager should be to make the most efficient use of the available re- sources to achieve desired results (high effic- iency and effectiveness). Applying The collection and analysis of data can help to Experience uncover all sorts of problems that may be worth considering as objectives for improving fire pro- tection efforts. Not only can problems be discovered, but also projected risk, may not actually be occurring as risk analysis might predict. Comparing real ex- perience history with projected risk can provide more accurate estimates of potential vulnerabil- ity to fire. Many benefits can be derived from a good fire incident reporting system, including: A. Identifying a community's historial fire problems. B. Identifying needed code changes. C. Formulating fire education programs. D. Formulating and supporting budgets. E. Planning future fire protection needs. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 6-4 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH N.F.I.R.S. The National Fire Incident Reporting System (N.F.I.R.S) provides rorms for collecting all sorts of information which can be used to quan- tify past fire protection experiences. Some of the elements that may be especially useful in- clude: A. Number of fire incidents. B. Life and property loss. C. Time of incident - month, day, hour. D. Geographic location. E. Essential fire cause factors. F. Cost of operations. 1. Equipment. 2. Personnel. 3. Materials. G. Spread of fire. 1. From point of origin. 2. From room to room. 3. From building to building. H. Suppression experience. 1. Reflex time. 2. Resources required (fire flow, equipment and personnel). 3. Loss per fire. A number of national organizations provide nation- wide historical data from a variety of points of view or intended use. The National Fire Data Center of the Federal Emer- gency Management Administration compiles and pub- lishes a comprehensive analysis of the nation's fire problems. Each edition of "Fire in the United States" offers an analysis of national fire data and discusses its implications for fire loss and control. P.I.L.R. The "Property Insurance Loss Register" is a com- puterized register of property insurance loss claims which contains pertinent data about fires as soon as adjusters make initial inspections and file reports. The system can inform subscribers of other recorded claims and information which bear similarities to a recent claim. This infor- mation can be valuable in pinpointing specific fire problems, i.e., arson. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 6 " 5 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH State Fire Most states now maintain a state fire incident re- Reporting porting system, most often in the state fire marshal's office. This information source can pro- vide clear fire experience trends in a variety of formats. By region, by cause, or by occupancy are examples. Where local data does not provide sufficient volume to establish trends, because of the larger number of fires analyzed, state data may show problems not evident in local data. Local In many areas, local data collection systems have Knowledge not been in place. A good source of reliable in- formation may be stored in fire department log books. In many cases, this can be extracted to get a meaningful picture of the local situation. Even in cases where data has not been adequately report- ed, good estimates can be formulated with the application of local knowledge. A brainstorming session among line firefighting personnel can help to clarify vague areas. Other Data There are other sources of information and data Sources which the fire service can use. Most of these are readily available either locally or regional- ly through field offices of the state or federal government. Some of these are: o U.S. Forest Service o State Forestry Department o Consumer Products Safety Commission o National Fire Academy o National Fire Protection Association Objective It should be kept in mind while collecting data Analysis that our efforts should be directed toward iden- tifying problems and predicting future trends both in terms of fire loss and system effective- ness. As an example, it may be more important to know how many fires spread beyond the room of origin rather than to know how many feet of hose and ladders were used. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 6-6 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER Incident Report Form Fill In This Report (ANY STATE) INCIDENT REPORT 1 a Oeiele 2 Change PTdJd" T»p P'Mo ^Dav * Dav oi me Ween t I I I I I ^'■NM 4DORESS I I I I I J_L T v pe V Zip Coae V Census Tract I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I Method Ql Alarm from Public V Type ol Sii Type of Action Taken Co Inspection D ' slr ' c ' I i I Mutual Aid 1 D Reed 2 D Given hk — I No Other Vehicles Used at Scene ^ Fixed Property (. incident-related tniunes* ! Service I I I I Others incident-related Fatalities' j Service I I I I Others I I I >? Modie Property Type' u J_L Termination Stage Equipment Involved in igmton (il TTypec F^Form oi Heat ot i 1_L Material ignited I i Form ol Material Ignited u ^ Structure Type P'Conslrucnon Type Constroction Method Extent ol Flame Damage Y Exient ol Fire Control Damage ■ Extent ol Water Damage Y Deiector Performance ^ bpnnkier Performance IF FLAME SPREAO BEYOND ROOM OF ORIGIN Type ol Material Generating Most Flame 1_L Avenue o( Flame Travel IF SMOKE SPREAD BEYOND ROOM OF ORIGIN Type ot Material Generating Most SmoKe Avenue ol SmoKe Travel Jl Method ol Extinguishment V Property Damage Oassiticanon I ■ ■ I V II Mod-ile Properly Otticer m Charge (Name Position, Assignment) Member Making Report (II Oillerent Irom Aoove) remarks are made c i Agent Application | License No (it any) Ignilion | Year | Make | Serial No fcr-h 6-7 Casualty Report Form _ Firp nenartment Fill In This Report in Your Own Words (ANY STATE) CASUALTY REPORT 902G 6/77 LAYOUT 2 | Page 5 rpwo ''incident No 1 1 1 1 1 r E x B r Mo No . r Oav 1 'Year 1 'Day ol Week ''Alarm Time V Casualty Number 1 I 1 1 D Delete 2 D Change QA OB OC 00 QE OF Casualty Last Name First Name M 1 DOB 'Age 1 F'Timeol Iniury I I 1 Home Address Telephone V SEX CASUALTY TYPE SEVERITY AFFILIATION 1 O Male 1 □ Fire Casualty 1 D Injury 1 D Fire Setvice 2 D Female 2 O Action Casualty 2 D Death 2 a Other Emergency Personnel 3 Q EMS Casualty 3 a Civilian V Familiarity Wuh Structure V Location ot Ignition 1 1 1 ^Condition Belore Iniury 1 * ^Condition Preventing Escape F" Activity at Time of Iniury 1 1 V Cause ol Injury 1 ^Nature of Iniury ^Part ol Body Injured 1 1 V Disposition 1 Q See Remarks on Back See Additional Report V Casualty Number 1 1 1 1 D Delete 2 Change OA oa OC 00 OC OP Casualty Last Name j First Name Ml DOB 1 F'Timeot Iniury I 1 1 Home Address Telephone V SEX CASUALTY TYPE SEVERITY AFFILIATION 1 Male 1 Fire Casualty 1 D Iniury 1 D Fire Service 2 Female 2 O Action Casualty 2 Death 2 Q Other Emergency Personnel 3 D EMS Casualty 3 Civilian > ^Familiarity With Structure I ^Location ol Ignition 1 ^Condition Belore Iniury 1 5 'condition Preventing Escape I ^Activity at Time ot Injury 1 Fcause ol Injury 1 ''Nature ol Injury I ^Pan ol Body Inured 1 ^Disposition 1 Q See Remarks on Back a See Additional Report ^Casualty Number 1 1 . 1 D Delete 2 D Change OA oa OC 00 Of or Casualty Last Name FirstName Ml DOB fAge 1 u r Home Address Telephone W SEX CASUALTY TYPE SEVERITY AFFILIATION 1 D Male 1 Fire Casualty ' □ injury ' Q P"e Service 2 □ Female 2 O Action Casualty 2 □ Death 2 Other Emergency Personnel 3 D EMS Casualty 3 Civilian O ^Farmhanry With Structure 1 W Location at ignition 1 ^Condition Belore Iniury 1 1 V Condition Preventing Escape 1 ^Activity at Time ol Iniury 1 V Cause ol Inrury 1 GJ ' Nature ot Iniury 1 ''Pan olBody inrured 1 'Disposition 1 See Remarks on Back Q See Additional Report Otlicer m Charge (Name. Position. Assignment) Dale Member Making Report (II Ditlerent From Above) Dale 6-8 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Group Discussion As a group the class will discuss various categories of data or information that will be helpful for the fire manager in collecting the kinds of facts needed to make good planning decisions. On the form below you can note down, if you care to, the categories of information and specific examples for each category. Categories 1 . 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Specific Kinds of Information Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A* SYSTEMS APPROACH Category 4 Category 5 Category 6 NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 6-10 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Group Discussion (continued) The group will continue it discussion now focussing on three specific areas which the fire manager needs to reflect on as part of the risk analysis process. These are cost , effectiveness and efficiency . If you care to, you can record below the questions the group suggests need to be answered for each of the three areas . Cost 1. 2. Effectiveness 2. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 6 " 1:L FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH 3. 4. 5. 6. Efficiency 1. 2. 3. 4. 5, NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 6-12 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Group Discussion (continued) Now the group will discuss questions that deal with two or three areas at one time. You can record these questions of you care to for later reference. 2. 3. 4. 5. 7. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 6 " 13 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Unit VI: The Community Experience I. Definitions A. Experience B. Base Data C. Base Year NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 6 ~ 15 FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH D. Effectiveness E. Cost F. Efficiency II. Applying Data Analysis A. Identification of special problems NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY 6-16 NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH B. Testing risk predictions C. Evaluating effectiveness III. Types of experience A. Prevention Activities B. Suppression Activities NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER 6 ~ 17 APPENDIX INITIAL ATTACK FIRE FLOW FORM Occupancy Dimensions of largest single open space: Length Width Height Cubic foot volume: cu. ft. Cubic feet divided by 100 = GPM FIRE FLOW ESTIMATE FORM BLOCK A: BASIC INFORMATION Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by Est. F.F. GPM BLOCK B: DETERMINE TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Ordinary Masonry or Concrete Non-Combustible Wood Frame Mixed (Use predominant type) BLOCK C: DETERMINE EFFECTIVE AREA Add Largest floor area (sq. ft.) a) 50% of all other floor areas except for fire resistive construction; b) 25% of two largest successive floor areas for fire resistive construction with vertical separations ; c) 50% of eight largest successive floors for fire resistive construction with unprotected vertical openings. (sq. ft.) TOTALS •COLUMN total sq.ft. (C) BLOCK D: DETERMINE BASE FIRE FLOW Select the correct GPM figure from Table 1 . GPM (D) c u BLOCK E: DETERMINE OCCUPANCY FACTOR ADJUSTMENT Step 1 : Select a high or low fire load factor up to 25% Step 2: Multiply (D) by this factor. Step 3: If HIGH RISK, add the amount to (D) ; if LOW RISK subtract from (D) . NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL GPM (E) U M R E E N T BLOCK F: DETERMINE EXPOSURE ADJUSTMENT Using the tables below, enter the separation and the adjustment for each of the building's four "faces." Separation Adjustment in Feet Range 0-10 11 - 30 31 - 60 61-100 15 - 25% 10 - 20% 7-15% 5 - 10% Expo- sure Sep. Feet Adj. North East South West Total adjust- ment (not more than 75%) Multiply (E) by this percentage. NEW ADJUSTED TOTAL GPM (F) BLOCK G: TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW 11 If less than 500 GPM, enter II 11 500 GPM. 11 II If greater than 12,000 GPM, II 11 enter 12,000 GPM. II 11 If less than 2,500 GPM, 11 11 round off (H) to the nearest 11 11 250 GPM. II 11 If greater than 2,500 GPM, 11 11 round off (H) to the nearest 11 11 500 GPM. II TOTAL REQUIRED FIRE FLOW ROUNDED OFF = GPM (G) (ENTER TOTAL ON LINE THREE, BLOCK A) ************************************************************ Life Risk Matrix Exit Classification Protection All exterior exits Interior exits access corridor Inadequate exits Fully sprinklered AND full detection VERY LOW VERY LOW LOW Fully sprinklered OR full detection VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Sprinklered exit corri- dors AND detectors in sleeping areas VERY LOW LOW MEDIUM Detectors in sleeping areas only LOW MEDIUM HIGH Manual fire alarm only MEDIUM HIGH VERY* HIGH No early warning MEDIUM VERY HIGH VERY HIGH NOTE The survey team should consider the occupancy use and the number of people at risk in a particular building. An unusually high occupant load or other conditions could indicate a higher or lower life risk categorization. *********************************************************** FIRE RISK RATING FORM SUMMARY Occupancy Name Address Classification F.M.A. Calculated by TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION (Circle one) Fire Resistive Heavy Timber Ordinary Non-combustible Wood Frame Mixed Property Risk (gpm's) Life Risk Community Consequence Initial Attack Sustained Attack Special Risk Factors SUPPRESSION CAPABILITY EXERCISE: DETERMINING INITIAL ATTACK GPM STRATEGIC DEPLOYMENT CHART UNIT ASSIGNMENT PERSONNEL GPMs TOTAL GPM APPLIED: INITIAL ATTACK CAPABILITY RATING FORM All personnel must be provided with full protective clothing and SCBA. Personnel without proper equipment do not receive any credit. 1 . Attack Lines in Operation x 1-1/2" at 100 gpm = gpm x 1-3/4" at 150 gpm = + gpm x 2" at 200 gpm = + gpm x 2-1/2" at 250 gpm = + gpm Total GPM Flowing 2. Water Supply Is adequate uninterrupted water supply in position to maintain total gpm flowing? If not, reduce to a flow which is assured as reliable. A pump operator must be assigned for each apparatus delivering water. Note: Tanker supply is acceptable when shuttle system is in place to maintain the total gpm flowing or if sufficient supply can be delivered to maintain the attack for 30 minutes. Reliable GPM Flowing 3. Search and Rescue Are required number of personnel assigned to perform search and rescue? Reduce gpm flowing by 50 gpm for each person not assigned. Required: Assigned: Reduction: gpm GPM Flowing Support Functions Are personnel assigned to perform necessary support functions? Reduce gpm flowing by 50 gpra for each person not assigned. Required: Assigned: Reduction: gpm GPM Flowing 5 . Ventilation Was ventilation team assigned and in position to accom- plish ventilation within 10 minutes? If not, deduct 100 gpm. Required: Assigned: Reduction: gpm GPM Flowing 6 . Command and Control Is fireground commander in position and in control of operations? If not, reduce gpm flowing by 50%. Required: Assigned: Reduction: Gpm Effective Initial Attack GPM Flow SUPPRESSION CAPABILITY EXERCISE: DETERMINING SUSTAINED ATTACK GPM STRATEGIC DEPLOYMENT CHART UNIT ASSIGNMENT PERSONNEL GPMs TOTAL GPM APPLIED APPENDIX FIRE RISK ANALYSIS: A SYSTEMS APPROACH Bibliography G. West Churchman, THE SYSTEMS APPROACH. M.Y., N.Y Delacorte Press, 1968. Rosna, Joel de , THE tIACROSCOPE: A NEW WORLD SCIENTIFIC SYSTEM. N.Y., N.Y.: Harper & Row Publishers, 1979. COMMUNITY FIRE PROTECTION MASTER PLAN. Palm Springs, CA: City of Palm Springs, 1979. "National Fire Incident Reporting System", FIRE IN THE UNITED STATES, The Federal Emergency Management Agency Second Edition, July, 1982. NATIONAL FIRE ACADEMY NATIONAL EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTER UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-URBANA 3 0112 105178021