SOP's For Dealing With Automatic Entrance Gates

[Guest Mfd]

Do any departments have a specific SOP for dealing with automatic gates at the entrance to a driveway or commercial propert or occupancy that are closed upon FD arrival?

If they are closed there are a lot of things you could possibly do depending on the urgency of the job/ situation. You could walk around and try and find the homeowner/ security/ property manager or super. Have a contact phone number to call during off hours, Request that the gate be tied into the fire alarm system so that if it is activated the gate automatically opens and stays that way, pre paln you're response area so you are aware that they are there in the first place and tie that into you're box so it is transmitted on initial dispatch, force them open manually, drive a rig through, tie a chain to them and rip them open, use a saw to cut the arms that open the gates, request a manual overide with a code/ key or lok box be installed. If you frequent the property often enough, like a large commercial or even residential property, perhaps the owners could give you a "clicker" for the trucks or for PD.

Just wondering what other ideas are out there, do not recall if this has been posted before.

Thank's

[ja3kfd 34]

Can your town add in an ordinace to have Knox Box gate system installed?

We have done, in the past push on them with Chiefs Car and broke the arm that holds it closed, loosened up bolt to slide it open ,our town has a Knox Box Ordinace and when gates are installed they have to be installed.

[abaduck 123]

A local private road in our area which was previously ungated has recently been gated. The gates are alleged to be siren-activated so they open automatically on approach of emergency vehicles; one option you didn't mention. Don't know how well it works in practice!

Mike

[Guest]

There is a gate in town here that responds either to the opticon or the siren, i can't remember which one.

[jcoppola 52]

The most obvious solution is to preplan your response areas. If you find gates through preplanning, find out who has the code/key/method to open. Then, this information can be put in a conspicuous place on the apparatus. One habit I have gotten into over the years is to put all gate locations and directions for entry on an index card and tape it to the officer-side sunvisor, so in a pinch, it can be pulled down and referenced. The key to this is that all officers know of it's location, but it is always there and no mapbook or preplan book needs to be referenced. Most gates, especially the bar style, respond well to forcible entry methods, some even will open with a simple push from a firefighter. When they need more, and there is no other alternative, the bumper of the engine will do nicely, just be prepared to explain yourself to the mechanic and chief .

[Future Fireman 4]

The most obvious solution is to preplan your response areas. If you find gates through preplanning, find out who has the code/key/method to open. Then, this information can be put in a conspicuous place on the apparatus. One habit I have gotten into over the years is to put all gate locations and directions for entry on an index card and tape it to the officer-side sunvisor, so in a pinch, it can be pulled down and referenced. The key to this is that all officers know of it's location, but it is always there and no mapbook or preplan book needs to be referenced. Most gates, especially the bar style, respond well to forcible entry methods, some even will open with a simple push from a firefighter. When they need more, and there is no other alternative, the bumper of the engine will do nicely, just be prepared to explain yourself to the mechanic and chief .

What about the winch or a K-12? At least then your shiny chrome bumper will be unscathed!

Mike

[Remember585 815]

We've got quite a bit of gated driveways in our district. Luckily, most of them are never secured! One road in particular is roughly 50% gated and I have only seen one or two actually closed on a regular basis.

Some gates will open via siren use. It just sucks to be the neighbor at 0300 who is sleeping when you wail on that thing.

From personal experience, you can usually find a way into the property by foot, where someone can hit the emergency button and/or release the gate from the inside allowing the apparatus entry.

[DaRock98 76]

Is it true that the gates with key pads if you hit 911 the gate will open? I've heard this before but don't know how true it is b/c I've never tried it.

[Dondestro 9]

Is it true that the gates with key pads if you hit 911 the gate will open? I've heard this before but don't know how true it is b/c I've never tried it.

[/quote

We actually had a call on sunday at a house with a gate for an A/A... When we pulled up we found the gate close and the siren didn't do anything. We tried dialing 911 on the key pad and nothing. We ended up getting the code to open it from dispatch but the key holder who responded was actually a contractor working on location and he informed us that if a fire alarm was to go off again the gate will automaticlly open and will not close untill the pin is punched into the pad. He told us he is awaiting a part from the gate company to install this option.

[GOYANKEES 0]

Do any departments have a specific SOP for dealing with automatic gates at the entrance to a driveway or commercial propert or occupancy that are closed upon FD arrival?

If they are closed there are a lot of things you could possibly do depending on the urgency of the job/ situation. You could walk around and try and find the homeowner/ security/ property manager or super. Have a contact phone number to call during off hours, Request that the gate be tied into the fire alarm system so that if it is activated the gate automatically opens and stays that way, pre paln you're response area so you are aware that they are there in the first place and tie that into you're box so it is transmitted on initial dispatch, force them open manually, drive a rig through, tie a chain to them and rip them open, use a saw to cut the arms that open the gates, request a manual overide with a code/ key or lok box be installed. If you frequent the property often enough, like a large commercial or even residential property, perhaps the owners could give you a "clicker" for the trucks or for PD.

Just wondering what other ideas are out there, do not recall if this has been posted before.

Thank's

Click2Enterclick2enter.net

[NWFDMedic 58]

There is a gate in town here that responds either to the opticon or the siren, i can't remember which one.

We have a gate in one of the areas we serve that is supposed to do this as well and it leads to an entire community, so walking isn't an option. We've found that the siren option doesn't work more often than not.

My ambulance service has programmed into their CAD system special instructions that can be automatically sent based on the address of the emergency, so they can send us the code via text message on dispatch. It is not the most secure method, but it allows the owners of the complex or facility to change the emergency code with one simple phone call.

To be perfectly honest though, a lot of our employees keep a list of important numbers/codes for facilities on their person, maybe in a more secure place like a wallet.

[AFS1970 504]

One of the districts in my City came up with an interesting soluntion for chained off driveways, which are used to close off certain city parks and sometimes parts of school grounds, as well as some private properties. They ordered a bunch of padlocks all keyed alike, and painted them red. When they were preplanning these areas, they simply put thier padlock at the oposite end of the chain from the owner's padlock. This way the chain can be dropped from either side, by either key.