What's Included In a Proper Size-Up

[x635 4,066]

When an IC rolls up, what should be in his/her concise size up to let incoming units know what they should be preparing for?

Without getting overzealous, what should be included to keep those responding safe when they get there?

[RES24CUE 168]

As per what is taught in the Intro to FIre Officer and Fire Office 1 classes the proper size up should include the size of the structure (dimension and height), the type of construction, the conditions present upon arrival, the actions being taken by the on scene unit, an assignment for the incoming second due unit, request any additional resources, and establish command.

Example 1: "Engine 1 is on location at a 2 1/2 story wood frame structure 60' x 30'; Heavy fire showing from the attached garage; Engine 1 is laying the driveway, stretching a 2 1/2; Engine 2 is to hit the hydrant at Main Street and Park Street and lay in to Engine 1. Start my first alarm assignment. Engine 1 Officer has Command."

Example 2: "Engine 1 is on location at a 1 story ordinary construction 100' x 30'. Negative smoke or fire from the exterior. Engine 1 is investigating; Engine 2 can proceed non-emergency; Engine 1 Officer has Command."

Although this seems like a lot to remember, with good practice it should take a relatively short amount of time to relay this information. If you take the time to just read this out loud you will see that it only takes about 15 seconds to give a detailed size-up that is integral to a successful operation. The size-up allows your additional units to know exactly what is happening at the incident, what they will find when they get there, what you have done so far, and the immediate steps that are required to support the crew that is already working on scene. Additionally, a detailed size-up will start your additional resources early and allow incoming chiefs to visualize what is going on at the incident and make preemptive decisions that will increase the probability of a successful operation.

[FFPCogs 863]

In simple terms your arrival transmissions should be brief but thorough enough to paint a clear picture to incoming units/Chiefs and should cover the following:

What have we got

What's it doing/where's it going

What are we going to do to start mitigating in keeping with RECEO-VS

Edited May 2, 2013 by FFPCogs

[FF1 172]

Type of construction (3 story OMD, 1 story commercial, Ect)

What is showing upon arrival (smoke, fire, nothing)

360 of the structure if possible (some buildings are 2 stories in the front and 3 in the rear)

What your exposures are and how close to the fire building they are and if any exposures are in danger of extension

What additional resources are needed (2nd alarm or additional Ladder, ect)

What your current resources are doing (2 L/S/O and Ladderpipe in operation, ect)

[CFI609D 119]

First of all, size-up should be a continuous process for all firefighters and officers. Pre-incident size-up is just as important: we should always gather valuable tactical intelligence about the dwellings and hazards in our response areas. Use EMS calls, fire prevention inspections, or other routine responses as an opportunity to expand your knowledge of your first-due area.

There are a number of good acronyms which help us perform an effective fireground size-up. The one I teach is part of Chief Michael Terpak’s size-up curriculum. It is: “COAL TWAS WEALTH”:

C: CONSTRUCTION

O: OCCUPANCY

A: APPARATUS (including staffing)

L: LIFE HAZARD

T: TERRAIN

W: WATER SUPPLY

A: AUXILIARY APPLIANCES

S: STREET CONDITIONS

W: WEATHER

E: EXPOSURE ISSUES/HAZZARDS

A: AREA (of structure)

L: LOCATION & EXTENT OF FIRE

T: TIME

H: HEIGHT

[PEMO3 523]

Everyone is looking at sizeup/preliminary report as an FD structure only report. These reports are useful to incoming units and bosses on all types of calls from a structure fire to an MVA to a Ped Struck to a school evacuation. Putting information out such as number of patients, staging area, best access route, hazards, etc. will aid in units getting a clearer picture of what they are "walking into" while enroute. It can also aid a boss in escalating an assignment prior to arrival based on information at hand. The important thing is to think outside the box and do not pigeon hole a reporting tool as only useful for one type of call.

[CFI609D 119]

Everyone is looking at sizeup/preliminary report as an FD structure only report. These reports are useful to incoming units and bosses on all types of calls from a structure fire to an MVA to a Ped Struck to a school evacuation. Putting information out such as number of patients, staging area, best access route, hazards, etc. will aid in units getting a clearer picture of what they are "walking into" while enroute. It can also aid a boss in escalating an assignment prior to arrival based on information at hand. The important thing is to think outside the box and do not pigeon hole a reporting tool as only useful for one type of call.

I agree that size-up is not just for structure fires. The acronym I posted above is definitely geared towards structure fires. It is important to point out, however, that size-up is far more than a "reporting tool." Rather, it is a process that should be used in any and all forms of incident command or emergency management. Size-up enables incident commanders and other responders to more effectively prioritize and allocate resources at an emergency scene.

[antiquefirelt 994]

triple post? delete at will.

Edited May 3, 2013 by antiquefirelt

[antiquefirelt 994]

It appears from Seth's original post that he's looking for the initial radio report (that's what we call it here). For us it's windshield view report of the incident before anyone exits the apparatus and makes a 360 or talks to anyone on scene. We require the the following:

Corrected address if other than initially dispatched

Number of stories

Type of occupancy

conditions showing

assumption of a "named" command

additional alarms or requests as needed

Examples: "Tower 3 is onscene at 3-2-8 Main St. with a 4 story multiple occupancy with nothing showing, Unit 7 has Main St.

Command".

" Rescue 3 is onscene at North main and Broadway with a two car head-on with severe damage, multiple victims

probable, Unit 14 has North Main Command, start a two more rescues and recall a company."

" Squad 3 is onscene at 34 Talbot Ave. with heavy fire showing from single story unattached garage with close

exposures. Unit #2 has Talbot Ave . make this a first alarm."

We did away with requiring the construction type in the initial radio report as today discerning this from the seat is much harder and everyone agreed that how they responded upon hearing this information didn't change things for them. We also rarely state our mode of operation, except that when it's defensive, it's declared defensive. Anything with nothing showing or limited showing implies an investigation mode, anything with smoke or fire implies an offensive attack unless defensive is declared.

Upon exiting the apparatus, the initial IC will conduct his/her full size-up and make a radio update as necessary. Everyone else who arrives must do their own personal size-up and those who are company officers must be looking at the issues relative to their assignment as well.

Edited May 3, 2013 by antiquefirelt

[antiquefirelt 994]

double post.

Edited May 3, 2013 by antiquefirelt

[CFI609D 119]

We are talking about two different things here:

1. Initial radio report for incoming units

2. Scene size-up

Yes, they should take place in tandem but a concise and accurate initial report will benefit from a thorough size-up!

Edited May 3, 2013 by CFI609D

[antiquefirelt 994]

We are talking about two different things here:

1. Initial radio report for incoming units

2. Scene size-up

Yes, they should take place in tandem but a concise and accurate initial report will benefit from a thorough size-up!

I agree about the two different parts, but when does your initial radio happen if you do your size-up first? Do officers complete their 360 before radioing that they're onscene? I think both are necessary, the first allowing for incoming units to have the heads up sooner, the latter being much more detailed and accurate, but taking a couple of minutes in many/most cases. If we make our initial IC give a full size-up report quickly, it will be rushed and likely contain more mistakes or miss more items, than if he/she gives the officer seat view report and is allowed a few minutes to do a decent size-up, make initial assignments and then get back on the air.

[wraftery 1,275]

We are confusing arrival reports and size-up...again.

The arrival report is quick and concise radio transmission of what you are seeing when you first pull up on the scene. It usually does not wait for a full 360, but it more often than not contains a 270 because you should get a view of the A, B, and D sides.

On the other hand a size-up is an analysis of the incident that is done to formulate your strategy and tactics to be use in controlling the incident. Notice I said incident because it's not necessarily a fire that you are responding. A size-up is not a radio report. Its a thought process.

I don't believe there is such a thing as a size-up report. It there were, you would be on the radio for several minutes going through your thoughts as you run down the list of "She was a tall cow," "Twas wealth," or whichever acronym you choose to use.

The "preliminary report" or "initial progress report" is a short version of what you consider important after doing your size-up, what you have done up to this point, whether more resources are needed, and anything else pertinent, unusual, or of urgency to the situation.

If you talk on the radio for 1 minute (and in radio time, that's a lot), the fire has the potential of growing ten times its original size. Keep it concise.

[Ladder44 73]

Address-Confirm If dispatched as in area of or across from or unknwon or orriginally incorrect

Floors-Self explanatory, just make sure your dept is set on what a floor is what, aka raised ranches or brownstones

Occupancy-Residential, commercial, taxpayer, church, school ect

Size-Rough dementions

Conditions-Smoke/fire showing and from where, evacuations being commenced, *nothing showing means nothing*

water supply-Your got own hydrant or you laid or have 2nd due lay or whatever your dept sop/sog says to do

Command-Are you establishing command (with a name) or not

Mode-Offensive, defensive, investigating

Edited May 5, 2013 by Ladder44

[wraftery 1,275]

Address-If dispatched as in area of or across from or unknwon or orriginally incorrect

Floors-Self explanatory, just make sure your dept is set on what a floor is what, aka raised ranches or brownstones

Occupancy-Residential, commercial, taxpayer, church, school ect

Size-Rough dementions

Conditions-Smoke/fire showing and from where, evacuations being commenced, *nothing showing means nothing*

water supply-Your got own hydrant or you laid or have 2nd due lay or whatever your dept sop/sog says to do

Command-Are you establishing command (with a name) or not

Mode-Offensive, defensive, investigating

This is a good example of an arrival report

[antiquefirelt 994]

"She was a tall cow"

That must be a rural size-up mnemonic? It's a new one by me, apparently we've come up will numerous anagrams of the same letters to get: COAL WAS WEALTH, WALLACE WAS HOT, and SHE WAS A TALL COW. All serve a purpose when studying and testing but hopefully aren't part of some officers' algorithm that is used to make the fire go out.

[wraftery 1,275]

That must be a rural size-up mnemonic? It's a new one by me, apparently we've come up will numerous anagrams of the same letters to get: COAL WAS WEALTH, WALLACE WAS HOT, and SHE WAS A TALL COW. All serve a purpose when studying and testing but hopefully aren't part of some officers' algorithm that is used to make the fire go out.

Just because a tall cow is mentioned, calling it a "rural size-up" is udderly ridiculous. I learned it from city guys who have never been within 50 feet of a cow.

But yes, it is another way (maybe the first) of remembering things to note in a size-up. All these anagrams use the same letters, more or less. They don't have a rule or SOP, but they are things to consider in your size-up. They are good for test questions, but they also might help your fireground decision making if you train on them.

Try putting up some slides or videos that show a building either pre-fire or on arrival. Then discuss them and size the picture up using your choice of Coal, Wallace, or Tall cows as a checklist. Hopefully, when you get to a real fire, some of these "Points to Consider" that you did in training will come out of hiding in the way back of your brain and become a useful part of your strategy.

Tommy Brennan (my hero, RIP) used to say that a good fire officer has the ability to fill his head with "stuff" and then be able to pull that "stuff" back out at 2 o'clock in the morning and put it to use.

[antiquefirelt 994]

I guess I can't figure out "multi" quoting? I'll have to look for the how to at some point. So here's what I can do:

Just because a tall cow is mentioned, calling it a "rural size-up" is udderly ridiculous. That's good! Now you're milking my rural joke

They are good for test questions, but they also might help your fireground decision making if you train on them. I couldn't agree more, my comment speaks to those who don't study or understand but instead choose to use the tactical worksheet or worse, an App to tell them what to look for. I hope that while most of us don't tick off the letters in any of the mnemonics, the information we're seeking and using to make decisions is based on most of the same factors. While everyone gets that you rarely need to figure out the weather or time as these are "givens" at the incident, over time other factors similarly become part of the subconscious.

Try putting up some slides or videos that show a building either pre-fire or on arrival. Then discuss them and size the picture up using your choice of Coal, Wallace, or Tall cows as a checklist. I like to do this about once a month for morning training. It helps see how people see things and what they're thinking about the conditions given the building and other factors in the pic. In fact tomorrow we'll be using an enhanced version of this to conduct an assessment for fire chief candidates for one of the VFD's adjacent to us that has a fulltime chief's opening.

[wraftery 1,275]

I'm glad you mentioned "time" in your post. Time of day has a great bearing on forming your strategy. But it's also a great example of why instructors must keep up with the times and not rest on their old material. Try these training questions for example on for size. I used a Target store because they .are all fairly big and almost everyone as been inside one.

You arrive for an automatic alarm in a Target store at 1100 on a Saturday. In your size-up what bearing does time of day have on your strategy?

Answer: Many people probably in the store. They must be evacuated and a search done asap

You arrive for an automatic alarm in a Target store at 0200 on a Saturday. In your size-up what bearing does time of day have on your strategy?

Old Answer: Store closed, no life hazard.

New Answer: There are very likely night shift people inside. There are cleaners, stockers, repairmen, likely to be in the building. Clues might be cars in the parking lot, workmen's trucks, some lights on in store, etc

[antiquefirelt 994]

You arrive for an automatic alarm in a Target store at 0200 on a Saturday. In your size-up what bearing does time of day have on your strategy?

Store closed, no life hazard.

New Answer: There are very likely night shift people inside. There are cleaners, stockers, repairmen, likely to be in the building. Clues might be cars in the parking lot, workmen's trucks, some lights on in store, etc

Great example, I might add: The clues might be cars, but don't count on that being the final answer as it seems the latest economic woes have many more people reducing the number of cars or finding alternative transportation. I see people being picked up and dropped off at these types of stores in our area every day, whereas a decade ago the employee parking area was far more full.

[wraftery 1,275]

Great example, I might add: The clues might be cars, but don't count on that being the final answer as it seems the latest economic woes have many more people reducing the number of cars or finding alternative transportation. I see people being picked up and dropped off at these types of stores in our area every day, whereas a decade ago the employee parking area was far more full.

There's a lot of good information in this thread. I hope the people who have "seen" it are reading it and not just "passing through"

Edited May 6, 2013 by wraftery

[firemoose827 324]

Initial radio report? Same as most; type or nature of call (to confirm with all responding units, wether its a fire, MVA etc.) confirm scene location, assume command, call for any mutual aid.

Size-up? Initially Im doing the 360 degree walk, figure out my strategy, develop goals for that strategy, using any one of the acronyms for size-up, then i will call out my location of the command post and start issuing orders to incoming units, as well as status reports every 15-20 minutes for the dispatchers sake and any other units about to be called.

Around me though its pretty simple, mostly 2 story residential homes and farms, with barns and outbuildings, only 3 commercial buildings in my town; 2 repair garages and a natural gas pipeline pumping facility. Our closest mutual aid district though? Wal-Mart, Price Chopper, multiple strip malls and taxpayers, a SUNY college, and a half dozen factories and wearhouses, so we can get thrown into any situation.

Im new at the chief officer scene though and am learning every day (when they can keep me from packing up and going interior)