This blog is dedicated to the men and women of the fire service who are at the end of the hose line or running the ambulance calls. Sometimes the view's from the rear facing seat are different than the front seat. This blog is dedicated to the hard working Firefighter's and their point of view!
On the hoarder scale, what would you rate this aspen apartment at. A 1 being a normal clutter and 5 inhabitable this may be a 4. What does that mean to you as a firefighter. It means that you must change your tactics and adjust for the changes.
Are you prepared?????
Bunker up, Buckle In, and always remember that we all start in the jumpseat!!!!
Hidden hoarders are everywhere. Look at this nice neighborhood and listen to the reactions of the people who live close to the evicted tenant.
It's just a matter of time before YOU are the one called to rescue someone from theses conditions.
Are you ready? You better be, tactical changes need to be made to make this a safer firefight. Before you know it you could be buried under all this stuff. Do you think they will be able to hear your pass alarm?
Great video of early stages of a structural fire in Lyons New York. This is a typical scene that you will find when response times are short. Notice the color, density, velocity, and location of the smoke. Can you tell where the seat of the fire is? Is this a "bread and Butter" type response. Just remember that what may seem as a normal run of the mill room and contents may well be a "Hidden Hoarder".
This fire demonstrates a effective interior attack coordinated with a incoming truck given the address to ladder the building. Great video of initial success on the fire ground. Shout out to Lyons NY!
Did you know:
The cost to the Melbourne Fire Department per fire was $2,100 for residential fires, compared to $34,000 for hoarding fires—more than 16 times the cost. (WPI study on hoarder house fires, 2009)
Ok viewsfromthejumpseat, time for another lesson if fighting hoarder home fires. Tools of the trade need for putting these fires out. Fire truck, water,hose, and a bulldozer. Yelp you guessed it, in this video you will see a great illustration of what it may take to get these fires completely out.
Fighting hoarder home fires is a complex animal. First, think of the fire load inside these homes. WOW....With the shear amount of contents on fire not to mention the density of the piles of belongings can make for some fast moving large bodies of fire. Now make it a small fire through a pathway then Bam your looking at pathways to your death.
Some prepare right, get your check list and it may just include the local demolishing company to bring in the heavy equipment to bring the building down to get the fire out!
Be safe!
Thanks to the brave members of Allentown Fire for this wonderful video showing a tough job in a hoarder home!
