FireFighterNation

After one of our firefighters partially fell through a roof during a vertical ventilation operation, we here at the Northwest Fire District in Tucson, Ariz., embarked on an analysis of our ventilation practices, and discovered that we only occasionally used PPA, which can be a very effective tool on the fireground. We began retraining our suppression crews to include PPA in their arsenal of tactics.

Positive pressure ventilation is often an effective and safe method for easing interior conditions and facilitating an offensive interior attack. However, as do virtually all fireground evolutions, they must be applied under the right circumstances, and only after proper evaluation of fire conditions by personnel who are sufficiently experienced to determine if it is safe to proceed.

Which is better: a fog/combination nozzle or a straight-stream nozzle? Mike Kaloz attempts to ease this ongoing debate by discussing the history of the fog nozzle, the indirect fire attack and why developments in both areas are crucial to firefighting.

Does your response area include homes or structures with wood shingle roofs? If so, as Greg Jakubowski explains, you must understand what causes them to burn, how they burn and the tactics needed to ensure firefighter safety and property preservation.

When we’re fairly effective as a crew, it’s easy to get a little arrogant, thinking we’re ready for anything. Sometimes, however, we need a reality check. Tim Sendelbach introduces a simple drill that can be used to test and expose weaknesses in how crewmembers work together.