Is it a Fire Engine or a Fire Truck?

How often have you noticed the fire engine going off to a call or said, “Look! There goes the fire truck!” ? Wait a minute, which was it, a truck or an engine? What’s the difference you ask? Your Coronado Firefighters are here to answer your questions. The Five Fire Fighting Objectives, all of which must be accomplished at any fire, listed in order of priority are: 1. Searching for and rescuing victims 2. Protecting exposures (keeping the nearby properties from catching fire or being damaged by heat or smoke–the proximity of structures in Coronado make this a vital operation) 3. Confining the fire (keeping it from spreading throughout the structure, minimizing damage and buying more time to rescue trapped victims) 4. Extinguishing the fire (putting out all traces of the fire) 5. Overhauling the fireground (a systematic look at the entire scene to make sure all fire is extinguished, the scene is safe and personnel can begin their investigation into the origin and possible cause of the fire) All but the last of these objectives are carried out in an atmosphere of flame, heat and smoke. Therefore, it is essential that firefighters understand the nature of fire and the factors that affect its spread, including building construction, type of occupancy, and types of fuel available to the fire. Your firefighters train intensively and continually for these duties. Now, let’s define the two main divisions in a fire fighting force: engine companies and truck companies. Engine Company Operations The engine company is the basic unit of a fire department. The fire engine provides the primary fire fighting agent — water — and the firefighting personnel and equipment to use that water effectively. Besides quickly delivering the firefighters to the scene, the main job of the fire engine is to pump the water to fight the fire. An engine has its own water tank — usually 500 gallons. This allows for a quick attack while other water is obtained. The engine has an array of valves for regulating water flow and carries hoses of many lengths and diameters. The engine also carries a variety of portable extinguishers for smaller fires. Engine company apparatus and equipment have been designed to allow firefighters to function effectively and quickly. Through training and experience, engine company personnel must acquire the knowledge, skill and judgement to perform the following eight basic operations of engine companies: 1. Searching for and rescuing trapped residents as well as injured or trapped firefighters 2. Water supply (bringing a large enough flow of water to the fire engine’s pump to supply all the hose lines needed, usually via a 4″ supply line from a fire hydrant) 3. Use of initial attack fire hose lines (the first hose lines to the point/room of origin.) 4. Use of backup fire hose lines (secondary lines to supplement the first attack lines for more water flow, protecting exits for victims or firefighters, or as an emergency back-up in case of personnel or supply problems with the first attack) 5. Exposure protection (see above) 6. Heavy water stream development (use of large bore stationary nozzles to protect exposures from large quantities of fire/heat by creating a curtain of water or, if fighting the fire from inside becomes perilous or impossible, for “going defensive” from the outside, knocking the fire down with mass quantities of water) 7. Tactical use of protective systems (controlling fire sprinkler systems, fire standpipes, heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems [HVAC], etc.) 8. Overhaul (see above) It is not expected that one company will perform every one of these operations at every fire nor are the operations necessarily to be carried out in the order given above. Just as fire situations vary, what needs to be done in each case will also vary. All Coronado Fire Department engines are staffed with at least one Firefighter/Paramedic and also carry a full complement of advanced life support (ALS) medical equipment. If that’s what a fire engine is, then what’s a fire truck? Truck Company Operations Truck companies are sometimes called “ladder” companies, “hook-and-ladder” companies, or “aerial” companies. Such labels might partially describe truck company apparatus, but they do not even hint at the planning, personnel, equipment and training that are coordinated in an efficiently operating truck company. A truck and a driver do not make a truck company, any more than a pumper and a driver make an engine company. The truck company consists of a ladder truck–carrying a full complement of ground ladders, tools, specialized equipment, and a 75′ to 100′ long aerial ladder with a nozzle (aerial device). Ladders are the most versatile pieces of equipment on the fireground. They can be used in all phases of firefighting operations and are limited only by safety considerations and resourcefulness. In order to get credit as a Truck Company an apparatus must carry the following complement of ladders: • an aerial device • 2 – 40′ or 35′ ground extension ladders • 2 – 28′ ground extension ladders • 2 – 20′ wall ladders • 1 – 16′ roof ladder • 1 – 14′ roof ladder • 1 – 10′ pole ladder • 1 – 6′ step ladder The truck also carries the firefighting personnel to provide access to, and exits for, all parts of a burning building. Truck company crews are also responsible for removing heat, smoke and gases to allow greater visibility and permit engine company crews to move rapidly and safely within a burning building. These examples do not by any means include all of the duties of a truck company, but they do illustrate two important points about truck company work: 1. Ladder work is required at almost every working fire. 2. Truck company operations either accompany or precede engine company operations. Truck company apparatus and equipment have been designed to permit truck crews to function effectively and quickly in accomplishing the same Five Fire Fighting Objectives as for engine companies (see the Five Fire Fighting Objectives above). The Coronado Fire Department only carries 24 foot ground ladders on their two existing fire engines (Coronado currently does not have a truck company) and there are over 1000 roofs that we cannot reach with the ladders we currently carry. Through thorough training and experience, truck company personnel must acquire the knowledge, skill and judgement necessary to perform the nine basic duties usually assigned to truck companies. These duties are: 1. Searching for and rescuing trapped residents as well as injured/trapped firefighters 2. Ventilation (cutting holes in the roof to release heat and smoke, to buy time for any trapped victims, to keep a backdraft or fire-smoke explosion from occurring and to minimize fire damage) 3. Laddering (to rescue trapped victims and get firefighters to the roof and/or upper floors or to provide escape routes) 4. Forcible entry (gaining access and providing for escape/rescue by forcing doors/windows, removing bars, gates, etc.) 5. Checking for fire extension (by opening up walls, ceilings, attics and floors looking for hidden fire that can re-ignite the structure) 6. Ladder-pipe operation (large bore, elevated master streams providing large water flows to protect neighboring properties or when “going defensive”) 7. Utility control (shutting off the electricity, gas and water to prevent injury or further damage) 8. Salvage (protecting property as yet undamaged by fire, smoke or water by removal or covering with tarps, containing excess water or channeling it out of the building) 9. Overhaul (as previously defined above) At some fires, it might be necessary for a truck company to perform all of these operations. Other fires might require only some of the duties. Just as situations vary, procedures for each situation will also vary. With the exception of rescue, the duties are not necessarily performed in the order given above. That, too depends on each fire situation. Rescue of victims is always the first priority but sometimes that can best be accomplished by quickly putting a smaller fire out. Aggressive and well-planned truck company operations are a vital component of any successful firefighting equation. Effective truck company operations combined with the engine company operations described above can be the difference between life or death and moderate or major damage at a structure fire. Note that truck company duties do not focus on the application of water but are support functions which ensure that water reaches the fire in a safe and expedient manner. An otherwise efficient engine company will have its effectiveness severely curtailed if it is unable to advance an attack line into a structure due to extreme heat and/or smoke conditions. Interior attacks must be well coordinated with ventilation crews on the roof. Other equipment carried on fire trucks: large capacity generators (and portable generators) providing up to 10,000 watts of electricity ventilation equipment (gasoline-powered and electric smoke ejectors for mechanical movement of heat, smoke, and gases) chain saws, axes, pike poles, and roof hooks for opening up roofs “Visqueen” (large, thin plastic sheeting) is used to cover roof openings to keep out the elements. forcible entry equipment (pry and crow bars, axes, halligan bars, and sledge hammers) rescue and chain saws (also used to force entry in more complicated instances) salvage equipment (water vacuums, squeegees, mops, and temporary diking) salvage covers (used to cover and protect threatened furnishings, and to hold or channel water from firefighting operations) hall runners (placed to protect carpeting and floors) submersible pumps (to pump out flooded areas) vehicle rescue equipment: gasoline-powered hydraulic pump (to provide power to jaws/spreaders for prying open doors, pulling steering columns, etc.) cutters (for cutting posts and removing roofs) rams (for pushing seats and dashboards to facilitate extrication of victims) air bags and cribbing to displace and stabilize heavy objects come-alongs, a pneumatic chisel and a variety of miscellaneous hand tools technical rescue equipment (ropes, anchors, carabiners, hardware and a Stokes litter) canvas carriers and shovels for the removal of burned debris. dry chemical, CO2, and water extinguishers a complete complement of Advanced Life Support (ALS) medical aid supplies an assortment of nozzles and fittings Self Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBAs) for each crewmember. Since Coronado does not have a fire truck at this time our fire engines must carry much of the truck equipment listed above. Currently, a first alarm for a reported structure fire consists of four engine companies, one truck company, a chief officer and a paramedic ambulance. To complete our first alarm assignment National City sends their truck company from across the bridge and San Diego City Fire and the Federal Fire Department send us an engine each to assist us. (my thanks to my lovely wife, Leslie, for her invaluable help in translating the complicated aspects of my job and its accompanying jargon into plain speak!)