Article 12

Fireground Size-Up For Factory and Warehouse Fires

For the purposes of this article, factories and warehouses are two different types of structures with different concerns. Factories are buildings used for the manufacturing of products. They range in size and use. A factory can be a large, 10-story, heavy timber building that is more than 100 years old with a number of different tenants. It can also be a modern one-story noncombustible building that encompasses an entire city block and is used for the manufacturing of one product. Warehouses are buildings used for the housing and storage of products. They also vary in size, shape, and construction. A warehouse can be a one-story limited-combustible building or a five-story heavy timber building of varying contents—both in a congested residential neighborhood.

Fires in factories and warehouses have resulted in large losses of life and property over the years. Many of these historical fires have changed not only the way buildings are designed and protected but also the way we fight fires in them.

Following is a review of the 15 size-up points for factories and warehouses (remember the acronym “COAL TWAS WEALTHS”).

CONSTRUCTION

The classes of construction and their inherent concerns at fires in factories and warehouses depend on building age and size. You may find buildings built of type 3/ordinary construction, type 4/heavy timber construction, and type 2/noncombustible construction.

Besides content concerns, each type of construction presents its own set of concerns that fire officers must recognize. Type 3 buildings are known to have numerous voids and concealed spaces for fire to travel through, type 4 buildings are known for their large wooden interior timbers, and type 2 buildings are known for their unprotected steel and combustible roof deck.

OCCUPANCY

Factories can have a significant occupancy load 24 hours a day, depending on the products being manufactured. It is not uncommon to open a factory door at 4:00 a.m. and find dozens of employees at work. This is where your preincident information is valuable.

Since warehouses are primarily used for storage, there is generally no high-occupancy load. Most of the people working there are loading and removing stock—usually during normal business hours. In the evening, often the only occupant is a night watchman. Again, your preincident information will identify the exceptions.

(1) A commercial factory converted into residential housing.

The occupancy concerns for factories and warehouses are based on their original or intended design. However, factories especially can have a portion of or their entire interior converted into varying types of occupancies—including residential occupancies. Then your size-up considerations must change, most notably in the areas of the life hazard, the location and extent of the fire, and the strategy and tactics associated with those factors. This is another area where your preincident information can prove to be valuable.

Contents present numerous concerns to operating firefighters—including heavy fire loads, water-absorbent stock, hazardous materials, and so on. You must identify contents, storage methods, and risks to firefighters and the environment. Accurate and up-to-date information will help with strategical and tactical decision making.

APPARATUS AND STAFFING

With department staffing and equipment limited, many departments must rely on mutual aid to mount any type of effective attack. Larger departments with more staffing and equipment must rely on additional resources from within to accomplish the same objectives. In both cases, it is important to recognize the potential and request help early.

(2) Big fires require big water; plan ahead. (Photo by Chris Fink.

Engine company considerations. Initial engine company operations will focus on the fastest and easiest way to deliver the largest amount of water to the seat of the fire. These decisions are not easy—they generally start with the number of people available to do the job. Factories and warehouses are large-square-footage oc-cupancies, often on multiple levels. Their fire load, stock configuration, square footage, and possible life hazard—combined with the fire’s location and extent—are concerns that will affect the selection, stretching, and placement of the first attack hoseline.

Base hoseline selection for a fire in a factory or warehouse on the following:

1. The building’s fire load. From the class of construction to the amount of combustible stock, expect a heavy fire load.

2. Btu generation. Because of the building’s fire load, you will need the quenching capabilities of a large hoseline.

3. The building’s square footage. Large, open floor spaces with high ceilings will allow the fire to take possession of the entire floor area quickly.

4. Volume, reach, and penetration. You will need a stream that is capable of reaching, penetrating, and quenching the fire. Medium size streams will not do it; so stretch the big line.

It is important to remember when considering the use of a larger diameter hoseline that the size commonly associated with these buildings will necessitate the use of long stretches, increasing the friction loss in smaller-diameter hoselines. Even when stretching from a standpipe outlet, especially in a very old building, the system will have piping most likely full of sediment, rust, scales, and possibly debris, further restricting the hoseline’s flow. Especially in a warehouse, getting sufficient water to the base of the fire can be compounded by narrow maze-like aisles, wall partitions, and varied stock arrangements. When these conditions are present, deflecting a heavy caliber stream off the ceiling will help control the flashover potential and allow a large curtain of water to rain on top of and behind obstructions like a giant sprinkler head to slow fire development.

Ladder company considerations. Salvage is a critical ladder company task at such fires, because with the large water flow requirements often necessary for extinguishment, you must give special consideration to protecting the stock on the floors below the fire.

Ventilation responsibilities will focus on the fire’s location within the building and the location of any endangered occupants. You must perform roof and interior stair ventilation to control the fire spread as well as remove smoke from the building’s stair shaft. Removing smoke from the stair shaft through bulkhead doors, skylights, and freight elevator shafts will improve visibility for fleeing occupants and advancing firefighters.

Forcible entry in factories and warehouses has historically been difficult and time consuming. Expect impediments such as heavy swinging doors, rolldown steel doors, and screened gates and steel shutters.

Searches in these buildings will also be very demanding and time consuming. Use thermal imaging cameras and disciplined search rope procedures for buildings of this size and configuration.

LIFE HAZARD

Life hazard concerns for firefighters are significant in these buildings. Statistically, more multiple firefighter deaths will occur in commercial occupancies than other occupancies. It is critical that the fire officer and firefighter recognize the events they will most often encounter and preplan for them.

The most common concern is disorientation. Large buildings with open spaces, narrow aisles, maze-like configurations, and highly piled stock require disciplined movement of firefighters. You must exercise strict control and accountability of members. Again, the use of thermal imaging cameras is a must.

Heavy fire loads, building size, and the stock amount and configuration can slow engine company movement in getting water to the seat of the fire, adding to the firefighter life hazard concern. The longer it takes to get water on the fire, the more opportunity fire has to travel. One factor that contributes to the fire spread concern is the unusual height of the roof deck above the floor space. High ceilings can mean rollover conditions not observed or felt at the floor level. In many instances, firefighters have been able to walk into a building with a light smoke condition at eye level, only to be caught in a violent flashover over the entire floor space minutes later. With ceiling heights of 30 feet and higher, conditions above may be drastically different from conditions below.

Be aware of heavy machinery, roof-mounted water tanks, safes, hoppers, bins, and air-conditioning units that may fall through burned out or weakened roof areas onto unsuspecting firefighters. Exercise caution when climbing on or working under loading dock canopies. They are designed to shield factory workers and stock from the weather during deliveries and pickups at a loading dock. If any fire is exiting a loading dock opening, the canopies’ integrity is in question.

TERRAIN

Terrain concerns include setbacks and accessibility and are usually address-specific. From longer hose stretches to restricted scrub areas for aerial and tower ladders, this is just one specific size-up factor that would warrant first-due officers to request additional help early.

WATER SUPPLY

You must preplan water availability in areas where factories and warehouses are located. Determine in advance hydrant types and locations, their accessibility, and flows that they can currently deliver (stay away from two-outlet yard hydrants). It is also critical to determine where you can obtain other water sources without significant delay—a natural body of water like a river or a pond or the largest city water main, for example.

Know your department’s resource levels—the engine companies that may respond and their gpm capabilities—which can become critical if you need large flows. Place larger-gpm pumpers at water sources to deliver the maximum volume. Use multiple or large-diameter hose from supply or attack pumpers to deliver large volumes of water to the seat of the fire. The emphasis is on establishing and delivering large volumes of water from multiple sources.

 

(3) Large structure fires not only can be influenced by the wind; they can also produce their own winds, spreading fire in all directions. (Photo by Ron Jeffers.)

AUXILIARY APPLIANCES AND AIDES

Suppression equipment in a factory or warehouse will be the firefighter’s best friend. First-arriving companies must supply sprinkler systems in these buildings. Even if the buildings have a wet system, the building’s sprinkler system can become quickly overtaxed from the fire load and its arrangement. Tall stockpiles and poor housekeeping practices will reduce the effectiveness of a discharged sprinkler head. It is critical that the fire department augment the system to provide an adequate flow to hold the fire while stretching hose-lines to finish the job.

The incident commander may have the opportunity to use some on-scene aides for assistance—including plant managers and plant engineers. Such people have a better understanding of the products and hazards in the building.

STREET CONDITIONS

A parking lot, an accessible loading dock, and wide spacious streets will most likely surround newer and more modern buildings. Older buildings in more congested urban environments usually are clustered and surrounded by multiple dwellings. In an attempt to provide housing, stores to shop, and places to socialize, adjacent landowners would build apartment buildings, erect stores, and provide all the necessities to keep the factory workers in the same neighborhood in which they worked. Little regard was given to parking, street width, traffic flow, and loading and unloading shipments and how such factors would impact fire apparatus movement and placement.

WEATHER

Fires in large buildings, even under the best weather conditions, are going to tax members. Personnel will require frequent relief and rehabilitation. In extreme temperatures, rotate and relieve firefighters more frequently.

One significant weather concern that will haunt incident commanders at large building fires is wind. Winds as low as 10 mph will hamper firefighting operations and can produce large fire conditions quickly. Whether from fire spread to adjacent exposure buildings or from flying brands downwind to remote buildings, unprotected buildings can become involved in fire.

EXPOSURES

These buildings can produce heavy fire conditions with tremendous amounts of radiant heat in all directions in a relatively short time. Protecting nearby exposures will not be easy. In congested areas, the IC will have to make some quick decisions regarding which exposures to protect first. Considerations include the following:

• Life hazard—the most severely threatened life hazard is always the first consideration.
• Flame frontage—with only one side of the building involved, the obvious concerns would initially be for any exposures on that side.
• Exposure distance—generally the closer the exposure, the more serious the threat. Buildings that are attached or separated by an alley or airshaft on the involved side require immediate attention. Remember, though, that what appears to be an adequate distance can quickly become threatened only moments later as the fire starts to advance. The key to exposure protection here is anticipation.
• Wind—although it is said that radiant heat will travel equally in all directions, the heat on the leeward side of the fire will always be more severe than heat generated on the windward side. This is most notably from the convected heat and smoke being transmitted downwind of the fire.
• Exposure construction and features—nearby buildings of combustible construction will absorb radiant heat faster than those built of noncombustible construction. Such features as light and airshafts, single-pane windows, and wooden sashes increase ignition concerns.

AREA

Area is a key size-up concern in the IC’s decision making. The bigger the building, generally the bigger the problems. Building sizes can range from as small as 25 feet 2 60 feet to as large as a football field. Consider the square footage involved as well as the square footage threatened. This is not always an easy task—often what is showing may only be the tip of the iceberg.

Large-square-footage buildings that have irregular shapes or are in close proximity to exposures will add to your difficulties. IC’s attempting to assign and coordinate resources from the front of the building will be hard-pressed to gather as much information as possible. Preincident in-formation about building layout and square footage, accessibility to surrounding sides, surrounding exposure concerns, and loads that can increase the collapse potential is invaluable. This information added to radio transmissions from the incident, specifically the interior and roof reports, will start to paint the picture of the fire’s potential involvement.

LOCATION AND EXTENT OF FIRE

By far the most difficult fire is one that originates below grade. Below-grade areas in these buildings will most likely be used for storage. This area will be large and full of combustibles and possibly hazardous materials. In addition, members can expect maze-like configurations, no ventilation options, and limited access points. Any success in extinguishing a fire in this area will be when the fire is small, easily reachable, and in its early stages.

(4) When one story becomes two or three.

Fires that originate in below-grade or lower levels will present a number of extension concerns—most notably from such areas as service and utility openings, light and airshafts, elevator shafts, and interior staircases.

Fires that enter shafts or top floors will require firefighters to check penthouses, bulkheads, and hoppers for fire extension. With the volume of fire associated with these buildings, fires on lower floors can accumulate enough heat to ignite upper areas of a shaft or top floor with little effort. Check even remote areas for extension. The volume of heat that can be produced because of the fire load, the combustibility of the structure, and the age of the building will warrant a thorough check of all arteries.

TIME

In a factory, the time of the day is a concern because of possible shifts of workers around the clock. In a warehouse, the workforce is present mainly in the daytime. Your preincident information will identify exceptions.

Time of the year can be equally significant for both factories and warehouses. For the holiday season, both will have increased fire loads of stock storage. Excessive stock could block sprinkler heads and exits, restrict hallways and stairways, and result in poor housekeeping.

HEIGHT

Most of these buildings will be within reach of fire department aerial ladders. The concern is when “one story actually becomes two or three.”

The newer, more modern warehouses built of type 2 construction may be categorized as one story in height when in actuality for laddering and access purposes their height to the roof or parapet line may be equal to the height of a two- or three-story building. When approaching these buildings, officers in the Jersey City (NJ) Fire Department now reference them in their initial radio reports as “one story equal to the height of two or three.”

SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR CHIEF OFFICERS

Determine the location and extent of the fire. This is easier said than done. Large-area buildings will make this difficult. First-arriving companies must determine this information as well as any information relating to accessibility. Such information can influence hoseline stretch and placement, ventilation, and occupant protection and removal.

(5) Create additional means of egress on multiple levels. (Photo by Mike McNamara.)

Determine the occupant life hazard. Specifically, determine the approximate number of occupants and their location in relation to the fire.

Resources. Don’t wait too long to get the answers to the points above before you request additional help. For some ICs, this should be an automatic request based on the limited number of firefighters initially dispatched. Remember, if you don’t need the resources, you can always send them home.

Incident management and accountability. It is very easy for firefighters to become disoriented or wander into an area where they shouldn’t because of the complexity of the structure—its height, area, and stock arrangement will make for difficult operations. Freelancing on the fireground only adds to the problems. On arrival, you must establish divisions/sectors. Assigning personnel to different floors, the roof, exposures, and so on allows for coordinated efforts and helps in tracking personnel.

Beware of conflicting radio reports. In large-area, one-story warehouses, the floor height of the buildings may mislead an engine company at ground level. That engine might report a light smoke condition with no heat, but the ladder company on the roof may see heavy smoke under pressure from the roof openings. If this is the case, base your immediate decisions on the roof report.

Create additional means of getting in and out. Do not hesitate to force or ladder more than one or two doors or windows for initial entry. Because of square footage, the stock arrangements, and possible maze configurations, firefighters may need to exit or a rapid intervention team enter from a different forcible entry point than the one initially made. Once you have additional exits, advise interior forces of their locations.

Know when to pull personnel out. Fires in these buildings can grow at an alarming rate. ICs must pay specific attention to radio reports from different divisions and groups established in and around the building, as well as their own visual observations. When conditions start to deteriorate, you have one of two choices: reinforce or withdraw.

Collapse hazards and collapse zones. Offi-cers should look for and report collapse hazards that can harm operating personnel—such as heavy machinery, heavy content loads, water-absorbent stock, and roof-mounted water tanks and hoppers. If available, use a surveyor’s transit to detect early building movement.

At fires in factories and warehouses, you must anticipate the difficulties and plan ahead. Having adequate and updated size-up information before and during the incident will help you achieve your operational goals.