The Fire Attack Triangle

Richard Ray cites three critical elements that can determine your firefighters’ success or failure on the fireground.

By Richard Ray

Photos by author

The core fireground function for any fire department is fire attack. It is also the key element in achieving the fireground priorities of life safety, incident stabilization, and property conservation. Water on the fire makes everything better on the fireground. We know that fire attack goes hand in hand with life safety, and quick water on the fire is key to a successful fire attack. There are fire departments today who still struggle with conducting an effective and efficient fire attack. Numerous factors come into play, but there are three components of a safe, effective, and efficient fire attack, and they can be applied by any size fire department: attack with confidence, attack with accuracy, and attack with speed.

What does it mean to conduct a fire attack with confidence? The simple approach is that firefighters are confident in their ability to conduct a fire attack, which comes from their knowledge, training, and experience. This does not simply happen—it takes time, effort, and diligence to learn and, more importantly, understand the best methods for conducting a fire attack.

The first step starts with training. What type of training does your department provide? Are your training programs focused on firefighting? Or rather are they focused on EMS, hazmat, or technical rescue? All of these disciplines are extremely important, however the core function for any fire department is fire extinguishment. Does your fire department’s training program provide the critical information and skills necessary for the firefighters to initiate and conduct a fire attack? Your organization should address these questions.

Does your department use the studies from UL FSRI? This is a great place to start your training. Specifically start with the Fire Stream Study and the Coordinated Fire Attack Study. Both provide the fundamental understanding with data to support on how a fire attack should be conducted and then the supporting “why.” If the reports seem overwhelming, start with the tactical considerations that were derived from the research. In addition to the reports, one can also go on the UL FSRI Fire Safety Academy and take the online courses. This will provide you and your department with a good foundation which will give you the confidence needed to make critical decisions for fire attack.

It is important to understand building construction, specifically in your district. As firefighters, it is imperative to understand how the building affects the fire and vice versa. We must understand how older construction methods differ from those of today. These fundamentals provide a firefighter with knowledge and understanding of how fire grows and spreads through a structure. This aspect is critical because it gives the firefighter confidence to apply the appropriate fire attack based on fire conditions and the building.

Another piece of conducting a fire attack with confidence is the equipment that firefighters have at their disposal. We put a tremendous amount of trust and faith in our equipment. Without faith and trust in equipment, the ability to be safe and aggressive on the fireground is nonexistent.

It starts with our personal protective equipment and self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). Turnout gear drills are great, but firefighters also need to work and move in the gear to understand capabilities and limitations. Why bring this up? There are departments in the fire service who don’t provide the necessary training to their members. They issue the gear, give a brief explanation, and conduct don and doffing drills but not the training that allows firefighters to understand how the gear protects them and their limitations while working in the gear. Then there is a failure to explain the importance of donning the gear quickly and correctly. Inevitably, firefighters arrive on scene and attempt to get dressed quickly, but because there is no confidence in their skill set, they fail. This in turn leads to injury for firefighters and civilians.

Lastly, conducting a fire attack with confidence comes with having confidence in the hose and nozzle package. This is critical because there are still several departments today that don’t understand their fireground flow and how it is achieved. Firefighters should understand the performance of the hose and nozzle package and how that performance equates to success on the fireground. Without confidence in the attack package, firefighters are not able to be effective when the time comes on the fireground. This becomes problematic for search crews and the victims along with increased property damage.

When a fire attack is conducted with accuracy, the line is positioned in the right position with the right amount of water! Conducting a fire attack with accuracy can be a challenge and is determined by factors such as failure to read the building or not having enough resources on the scene to conduct the appropriate attack.

Conducting an accurate fire attack starts with nailing the size-up. First-arriving firefighters must get an accurate read of the building and deploy the necessary resources to address the fire. Many firefighters state that a size-up starts at the time of dispatch. Though this may be true, size-up actually starts well before the incident ever happens. Once on scene, firefighters should provide an accurate size-up. Remembering that a 360° view of the building really helps the decision-making process. It is also important to pay attention to the presence of a basement and any abnormalities such as utilities, swimming pools, etc. The 360° view of the building helps to ensure that we deploy our resources and personnel on the fireground. Our focus when doing a 360 should be on fire location and potential victim location.

Firefighters should know their response area. This is achieved through preplanning commercial businesses and getting out and studying the residential aspect of the district. These preplans allow the firefighters to formulate a game plan for a potential incident at a given location, so that when the call comes in, the firefighter should already know the area and know the buildings to which they are responding. This knowledge on the front end of the incident allows the officers to have dialogue with their firefighters about expectations and how to address various issues, including what they could potentially encounter, exposure issues, water supply issues, occupancy, and fire load, to name a few. All of this require firefighters to be on their game to position the attack line at the right place with right amount of water.

Earlier we discussed the importance of understanding building construction and fire behavior, which is crucial to positioning the attack line with accuracy. I would be remiss if I didn’t include occupancy type. The building, occupancy, and fire load all require the firefighter to understand which size attack line to use and where to position said attack line. Firefighters should understand how these elements affect second- and third-hoseline size and placement.

Have you experienced fires where the initial fire attack wasn’t accurate? How did the fire go? Hopefully it went well, but chances are it probably did not. Many times, neglecting that critical aspect precipitates multiple problems, such as running out of water, causing more property damage, or even a negative outcome for a trapped citizen. We start to see water flowing on the fireground that is running off the roof, the hose stream going over the fire, or the attack line is in operation and the fire is simply not getting better. Understanding nozzle operation—meaning nozzle movement inside or outside the building—addresses burning fuels and cooling surfaces, which promotes a safer environment for the firefighter and the citizen, with less property damage.

Lastly, to conduct a fire attack with accuracy, fire departments should have the appropriate number of trained personnel on scene. This aspect can be a daunting task especially for smaller and rural fire departments. Smaller fire departments don’t always have the luxury of having the appropriate number of firefighters or equipment on scene to get the fire attack right, especially when they encounter advanced fire on arrival.

All firefighters know that time is our greatest enemy on the fireground, especially for trapped occupants. The fuels and fuel loads we face along with building construction have compressed the stages of fire, which causes rapid fire growth. To combat the time component, firefighters must drill daily on donning their turnout gear and SCBA along with stretching hose from the rig. There are numerous videos where firefighters can be observed taking extended time to get the hoseline stretched into operation and water flowing on the fire. However, these are the elements that we can control. Drill daily. Reduce turnout time. Drive with due regard and, most importantly, once you are on scene, move with a purpose. Though I am not a fan of running, if running on the fireground works for you, great! But simply move with purpose. Moving with purpose should also be done when we are training.

Moving with speed and efficiency comes from having a proactive attitude and a desire to continually improve. These firefighters are the ones who look daily on how to sharpen their skills and create the necessary muscle memory like soldiers and professional athletes. The citizen is the greatest benefactor of this. Firefighters who are ready to go to work once they step off the rig will apply water to the fire much faster. This equates to an improved environment for the trapped occupant and firefighters with less property damage.

When it comes to deploying hose and nozzles, hose loads matter. Which bed is the firefighter stretching the hose from? Do firefighters know how to stretch the load? Is the apparatus set-up for success or is it set up for a parade? There’s a big difference in the two. Hose loads should be versatile and functional for personnel and the area served. Many departments have preconnected hose loads. But what happens when the firefighter comes up short because the preconnected load does not reach the objective? How do your firefighters overcome this challenge? What is their play? It is important that firefighters know how to estimate a hose stretch. Stretching short delays water to the fire. Get out and preplan those difficult areas so that when the time comes, hose can be stretched efficiently and effectively to the objective.

UL FSRI has done numerous tests that have proven quick water on the fire is key. The type of attack that accomplishes this will be driven by fire location, resources, and personnel. When applying the appropriate gallons per minute water to the fire, firefighters will use less water. This is important especially for those departments operating with a municipal hydrant system. It is not foolproof—the line must be positioned in the right place, at the right time, flowing the right amount of water. Some fire departments do this well; others struggle. I believe success is built on the firefighters’ training, knowledge, and experience.

But what about the challenges of getting water on a fire that’s out of the firefighters’ control, such as one with hoarder conditions, advance fire on arrival, secured buildings, etc.? Sometimes firefighters’ best efforts are hampered by those things they cannot control, however the trained firefighter knows how to overcome these challenges by applying a skill set and knowledge.

It takes effort to conduct a fire attack with confidence, accuracy, and speed. All fires present challenges. Some are easier than others to overcome, however with training and preparation, mistakes can be minimized and success achieved. Leaders in the department should understand the strengths of their personnel, work on their weaknesses, and promote an aggressive mindset that is built on high performance, knowledge, and training! Have open dialogue among personnel that promotes growth, confidence, and humility. Whether you are a volunteer or career firefighter, it is your duty to be a knowledgeable professional for the citizen, as our only interaction with them may be on their worst day. Stay safe!

Richard Ray is a 31-year veteran of the fire service with both career and volunteer experience. He is a career firefighter with the City of Durham (NC) Fire Department, where he serves as a battalion chief and an adjunct instructor for the training division. He is a member of the Creedmoor (NC) Volunteer Fire Department, where he serves as a firefighter. He instructs at the national level, contributes to Fire Engineering magazine, and is a member of both the FDIC International Advisory Board and the UL FSRI Size-Up and Search & Rescue Tech panel.