Batch Mobilising

Question 1

Priority of attendance

Answer 1

In general, fire calls will be attended on a restricted basis, with special appliances as for the predetermined attendance. Priority attendance will be given to special service calls where incidents involve a risk of fire, explosion or injury and to calls received from hospitals, Old Peoples Homes, Public Utility Services and Food Storage Depots. Calls received at stations from such premises are to be passed immediately to Control. All incidents of a lesser priority will be subject to the Batch Mobilising procedure.

Question 2

Normally crews should not be employed

Answer 2

in mopping up water, removing trees, or other work which could be performed by the occupants or other appropriate service. Exceptionally, however, assistance of this sort may be given to aged or infirm persons.

Question 3

Action at various incidents
6.1
Burst domestic water pipe

Answer 3

The domestic water supply stop cock (either internal or external) is to be shut down

Question 4

Action at storm damage incidents

Answer 4

The damage effects of high winds, or a storm, will be varied. Damage to buildings, hoardings, fencing and trees etc will need to be made safe if necessary. Action will be restricted to what the resources of the Brigade will allow.
7.2
Trees across Roads
7.3
Where it is clear that the crew are unable to move the fallen trees due to their size, the attendance of the appropriate London Borough Emergency Team should be requested through Control. Crews should assist only where necessary

Question 5

Action at power failure incidents

Answer 5

The majority of these incidents will be to person/s shut in lift. Normal on scene procedures for these incidents will apply.
8.2
There may be other effects of a major loss of power supply at premises such as Hospitals, Refrigerator Stores and Old Peoples Homes. Some of these premises may have no emergency power provision, whilst others may have suffered emergency generator failure. Attending crews will render assistance wherever possible.

Question 6

Messages
9.1
Assistance messages
(a)
Flooding

Answer 6

An officer, who finds that he has an exceptionally large quantity of water to be pumped out of a building, may ask for assistance e.g. two additional pumping appliances required. This message is to be followed as soon as possible by an informative message, giving the approximate area and depth of water to be pumped out. Messages requesting special equipment or pumps are to be sent only when essential

Question 7

Informative messages generaly at batch mobilising

Answer 7

Such messages are only to be sent if assistance has been requested or if the incident is likely to be protracted, or if a risk to life is involved. The message is to be as brief as possible e.g. flooded premises, pumping in progress. If an appliance is delayed and still has a number of calls to attend details of the remaining calls are to be passed to Control so that another appliance can be ordered.

Question 8

Stop message from Batch Mobilising

Answer 8

When an appliance is ordered to attend a number of calls stop messages are not required until return to station.
(a)
If all incidents attended are of the same stop code type (e.g. code 7), then one message to control to indicate that all incidents have been attended to will be sufficient.
(b)
It will be necessary to differentiate between individual incidents should the classification of the incident have changed from the initial ordering.

Question 9

Since control will be experiencing extremely high call rates during Batch Mobilising Procedure, messages requesting other Public Services/Utilities to be informed of incidents….

Answer 9

should NOT be sent to Control (e.g. electrical/gas apparatus involved, supply shut down, inform appropriate authority). In these circumstances the incident commander is to liaise with the occupier

If the occupier is not in attendance and a supply is shut down the incident commander is to attach a tag (see Policy Number 106 - Public utility shutdown - notification to occupier) to the relevant main supply valve/switch. This will inform the occupier not to reinstate the supply until it has been checked by a competent person.

Information that the supply has been shut down should be passed to Control by TELEPHONE as soon as practicable on RETURN to base so that the relevant utility can be informed.

In EXCEPTIONAL circumstances (e.g. elderly or infirm/disabled occupant) the incident commander may pass such a message in the normal fashion.

Any requests for the attendance of any Public Service/Utility are to be passed to Control as normal. Any such messages received by Control from incidents will be processed as normal but will not be retransmitted to the stations concerned. It must also be noted that under these circumstances other Public Services/Utilities will also be receiving high numbers of calls for assistance from the public.