Ch. 14 Multiple Dwellings

Question 1

MDs pose a high life hazard…

Answer 1

Regardless of time of day

Question 2

Fire at MDs are a made to order situation for:

Answer 2

HFTs

Question 3

Heavy fire showing in 2 or more apartments

Answer 3

Time to bring out 2 1/2 in. hose

Question 4

Apartments in wings may have two exits, one to each staircase but no:

Answer 4

Fire escape

Question 5

The presence of ______, ______, or _______ stairs are critical PREPLANNING information the IC needs for strategy and tactics.

Answer 5

Single, isolated or wing

- Isolated and Wing=officer in command and members on FG.

Question 6

Type of stairs where Staircase maintains constant location on each floor

Answer 6

Return Stairs

Question 7

Difference in PDs vs MDs

Answer 7

PDs = 1-2 families.
MDs = 3 or more families.

Question 8

After first 2 lines stretched and protecting stairway, any add’l lines stretched should:

Answer 8

Take alternate route to avoid overcrowding stairway.

3 or 4 up one staircase okay for protecting secondary exits, remote area to cut off extension, lines above a fire.

Question 9

No aerial view or preplanning drawing is available, the ______ may be only people with understanding of overall layout.

Answer 9

Roof team

Question 10

Wings are identified:

Answer 10

Left to right, as command is looking at them. Start with A, then next to the right as B, so on.

Question 11

It is in the ______ that stairways, elevator shafts, compactors, incinerators and other bldg features are found.

Answer 11

Throat

platform with turntable in line with throat-telescoping boom or elevating platform-no aerial ladder

Question 12

Ch 14, ___________ likely to be one of the hottest places in bldg other than fire apartment

Answer 12

Stairway that leads to bulkhead

Question 13

______ is the PREFERRED way of reaching most roofs, because it is totally independent of the structure.

Answer 13

Aerial device

Question 14

FIRST choice for reaching the roof, even over aerial device

Answer 14

Adjoining building (if bldgs built in rows) {chOIce = adjOIning}

• much faster and safer.
• unless common cockloft.

Question 15

Greatest danger areas, in order (MDs - Ch 14)

Answer 15

1) Fire floor.
2) floor above fire floor.
3) top floor

Question 16

Interior search team has the fire floor. If the roof team is done on the roof, they will descend via fire escape. Where the fire is dictates where they go:

Answer 16

Fire venting out windows to fire escape (lower floor)-roof team starts at top floor and works down.
Fire on top floor-vent windows of top floor to assist search.

Question 17

Method to put roof members in position to reach trapped victims sooner than any other method

Answer 17

Descent down REAR fire escape.

• particularly fire in vicinity of main entrance.
• best chance of survival.

Question 18

Three factors changed the way FFs look at MDs

Answer 18

Vacant bldg situation (Rust Belt)
-unmaintained, weather.
Ltwght/Truss Construction (Sun Belt).
Partial collapse from metal cornices (collapse zone beneath cornice)

Question 19

Fireproof multiple dwellings are designed to:

Answer 19

Act as our ally

Question 20

Threats when wind and no wind through windows

Answer 20

No wind = routine, threat is smoke (vent stairwell 👍🏻).

Wind = severe, threat is actual flame and high heat (vent stairwell 👎🏻), draws fire to stair.

Question 21

Fans (PPV) useful at stopping chimney effect in stairwell if:

Answer 21

No other exhaust openings nearer the apartment door.

As long as wind remains under 25 mph.

Question 22

Hotstop-M characteristics

Answer 22

• 10 x 12 ft.
• 1500F unlimited/2000F 15 minutes (adequate 2500F and higher).
• Kevlar ropes on 4 corners.
• lowered from 2 flrs above, tightened 1 flr below.
• squad and rescue companies
• chains lower edge

Question 23

K.O. Fire Curtain’s characteristics

Answer 23

• 6 x 6 ft.
• light enough, carried by one member (routine tool).
• every ladder company.

Question 24

Floor-below nozzle characteristics

Answer 24

• 1 1/2 in. pipe , bent back on itself at 135 degrees.
• connected to any handline.
• 15/16 in. tip (180 gpm).
• Close stairway doors, everyone out of halls.
• apartment/residential*

Question 25

Ways to recognize MDs, apart from size and obvious indications (5)

Answer 25

Counting gas or electric meters.
Doorbells or mailboxes.
Fire escape.
Information received “smoke from apt. 4”.
Presence of padlocks on interior rooms (SROs)

Question 26

SROs?

Answer 26

“Single room occupancies”.
Demand fast reinforcements for search.
Each and every door forced and searched.
Low-income areas with these also areas of highest incidence of fires

Question 27

Self-closing devices removed in?

Answer 27

Especially true in senior citizen apt complexes AND those housing disabled occupants who use wheelchairs and walkers

Question 28

Light and airshafts pose a danger of fire extending ____________ as well as _______________. This is common because of the _____________.

Answer 28

Horizontally across the shaft
Vertically, due to autoexposure or lapping flames

Window layout, often directly above or opposite the window of the fire apartment.

Question 29

Light and airshafts.

While waiting for hoseline, search crews can greatly slow entry of fire by:

Answer 29

Removing all combustible materials, such as curtains and by judicious use of portable extinguishers OR even pots of water from the sink

Question 30

MDs

Two greatest THREATS to the structure in the event of fire are from ________ and ________.

Answer 30

Pipe chases.
Channel rails (spaces around VERTICAL columns)

Question 31

MDs

Elevators are generally required to be built with ________ fire resistance ratings

Answer 31

At least 2 hour

Question 32

Economy of construction often results in _______ being back to back in adjacent apartments.

Answer 32

Bathrooms and kitchens

Question 33

Taking a line above fire and you are working in very heavy smoke conditions, try to find _______________. In this wall usually the biggest pile chase.

Answer 33

The wall directly behind the toilet and open it up

Question 34

_______ may be found in any building that is built with steel columns or I-beams supporting floors. The can appear ___________. Generally steel framing used in Class 3 buildings that are _____________.

Answer 34

Channel rail void
Anywhere in the floor layout (usually in closet)

More than 25 ft wide

Question 35

Importance of positioning a line to protect _____________ cannot be overemphasized.

Answer 35

The main vertical artery, the stairway,

Question 36

Fastest method in selecting stairways is to ________. Layout of ground floor _________ be taken as indicative of the upper floors.

Answer 36

Have a member climb to the second floor and locate proper apartment line.

Shouldn’t

Question 37

Members discovering either of these stairways should relay information to the officer in command AND all members on the fireground.

Answer 37

Isolated and Wing

Question 38

All of the staircases connect to a common hallway on each floor

Answer 38

Transverse stairs (FF can transverse from one stairway to another)
*beware of opposing streams*

Question 39

Two members ____________ at all multiple-dwelling fires for rescue, as well as ventilation, even for lower floor fires because:

Answer 39

Must proceed immediately to the roof

People try to escape by running to roof, don’t quite make it and collapse on stairs or just inside door on landing.

Question 40

Fire escape to roof

Word of caution on fire escapes (3 points)

Answer 40

Most don’t go all the way to the roof
Select fire escape that isn’t likely to be threatened by flames venting below you
They are simply dangerous

Question 41

Look for fire escapes and cockloft vents; if they are present, the building is likely ______. If you don’t find any, chances are it is a _______.

Answer 41

Class 3

Class 1

Question 42

Staircases back to back.
Each door on the floor separated from the door to the other stairway only by the length of the staircase.
Must go down two floors to find the same orientation

Answer 42

Scissor stairs

Question 43

Fire in these structures are generally confined to apartment of origin and fire extends to floor above, most often by AUTOEXPOSURE.
Relatively routine affairs
Punishing to attack team, due to high heat

Answer 43

Class 1 MDs

Question 44

Class 1 MDs.

One hazard increasingly seen in these buildings:

Answer 44

Cable/tv/internet wires strung along the public hallway in plastic wire molding

Question 45

Severe wind driven fires.
Primarily a ____________
Once building exceeds _________, the height of the building does not play a major role, nor does floor of fire

Answer 45

Cold weather phenomenon.

Eight stories (when Class 1 most often required)

Question 46

Severe wind-driven fire.

Another factor that was discovered is:

Answer 46

Very high wind is NOT required

several occurred with only 15 mph winds

Question 47

Severe wind driven fire: ________ is the culprit

Answer 47

Airflow through the building.

temps in excess of 2,500F

Question 48

Threats in fireproof residential buildings caused by wind (routine vs severe).

Answer 48

Routine fire-fire stopped by one line, SMOKE in stairs/upper floors is PRIME threat to occupants and easily combated by venting the top of stair/elevator shaft.
Severe fire-threat is ACTUAL FLAME AND HIGH HEAT and venting the stair can draw fire to that stair.

Question 49

PPV pressurize stairwell works as long as: (2)

Answer 49

No other exhaust openings nearer apartment door.

Wind remains under 25 mph

Question 50

Sandwich apartments.

Most serious situations are usually encountered at fires in the _______ apartment.

Answer 50

Down

Question 51

The _________, only found every ____ floors, often have windows, which are an indicator to the presence of sandwich type layouts.

Answer 51

Public hallways

Three