LUBA 076/077 VOL 1 of 2 - Laserfiche WebLink

Users of this manual must understand its limita- T tions.`It is directed to designers of buildings and fire protection systems to help them build on exist- Y ing codes and standards to assist the fire service. For example, the topic of emergency radio commu- rd nications can be extensive; however, its treatment F _i - here-i's limited to the equipment in buildings.that can support radio communications. Likewise, there. =,3 are entire standards and books written about sprin- Aft kler, standpipe, and fire alarm design. However,` this manual covers only portions of those systems ' ~ with which the fire service interacts and suggests design details that will help streamline or support 3 qµF r kN fire service operations. j 2 - A FIRE SERVICE PRIMER This section will give those outside the fire service Ali a basic understanding of how the fire service oper- ates during an emergency.. It will also familiarize A , them"with the varying capabilities and organiza tions involved in fire fighting. Fire service organizations can be classified as career, volunteer, or a combination of both. Career C staff members are paid for their work; while volun- teer members are unpaid. Combination organiza- tions ' have both career and volunteer staff. Career organizations typically serve the larger, more urban 3 - s or industrial settings, although many smaller cities " {y , t =T or towns will have a full or partial career staff. Volunteer organizations are usually found in more suburban or rural settings, although. some serve a. a o densely populated areas and have very high emer- ~ _ gency response rates. Another way to categorize fire departments is by whether fire stations are staffed with personnel ready to respond. Most career organizations have personnel who remain in the station while on duty. (Fig. 1.2) A view from above of both a pumper (top) and However, "call firefighters" are paid on a per- an aerial apparatus (bottom), in this case a platform type of aerial. response or hourly basis and do not remain in their. station awaiting emergency. calls. Most volunteers A typical emergency begins with the discovery respond from home or work when they are alerted and reporting of an incident. The time span of this to an emergency. On the other hand, there are phase can vary greatly, and the fire service has no organizations that have volunteer personnel control over this. After the report is received, the staffing their stations on shifts or even living in the information is processed and the appropriate units stations. are alerted. Those firefighters not staffing the sta Another fire service organization is the industrial tion (whether volunteer, paid on-call, or collateral fire brigade. This is an organized group of employ- duty fire brigade members) must travel to the sta- ees specifically trained to provide fire suppression, tion. Firefighters then don their protective equip- and perhaps related emergency activities, for a spe- ment, board the vehicles, and the response phase cific employer. Members may be dedicated full begins. In some organizations or scenarios, mem- time to emergency operations, or emergency bers not staffing the station may go directly to-the response may be a part-time, collateral duty. incident scene. s, 242 07 %U Occupational Safety and Health Administration 122