The First-Arriving Engine at Apartment Building Fires
Christopher Langlois
Battalion Chief
Omaha, NE Fire Department
Thursday, April, 23, 2020
3:30 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
In volunteer or career departments, large fires in large buildings eventually bring lots of resources.
However, in every one of these fires, a single crew, usually an engine company, arrives first.
Often, the ability of this first-arriving crew to make an attack with forward progress on the fire is downplayed because it is alone against a much larger enemy. What can it realistically do?
This class illustrates why the first-arriving engine has the potential to be, and must be, a powerful force to be reckoned with.
The focus is on fires that start on the exterior of apartment buildings and the first five to 10 minutes after arrival of the first engine.
