BACKGROUND

Each day firefighters across the country combat fires and place themselves in harm's way. The extent of risk to firefighters is related to a number of factors, including how often they are exposed to working fires, the training and equipment they bring to the task, staffing levels, the decision-making skills of fire officers, discipline, building construction, and the exact nature of fire itself.

Though the overall number of structure fires continues to follow a downward trend, today's building fires are burning hotter than in the past because more synthetics and polycarbonate materials are used in construction and interior furnishings. The economical, pre-fabricated, lightweight trusses that are commonly used are held together with gusset plates that fail after a brief exposure to temperatures of 800 to 1000 degrees F, which results in more rapid building collapse. Because of lightweight construction, today's buildings are less resistant to fire and can be more dangerous environments in which to fight fire, unless countered by working sprinkler systems.

Due to the declining numbers of structure fires, firefighters on the whole have less fire ground experience than their predecessors had a generation ago. As many of the more experienced firefighters and officers seek retirement, they are replaced by young officers with comparably less fire experience. Complicating this situation is that live fire training with Class A combustible materials (especially in acquired structures) is being replaced by temperature-controlled, fuel-fed fires in non-combustible structures. There are advantages to this type of training, but it is less realistic. Departments are relying less on live fire training for myriad reasons, including among others environmental, safety, and cost.

The personal protective gear being worn by firefighters today is excellent; some say that it is even too protective. Firefighters now can advance deeper into structures and get closer to the seat of a fire than in years past because the turnout gear protects well against heat, but this can create problems. A longer exposure to fire will rapidly deplete a firefighter's energy and air supply; and the firefighter will have a greater distance to travel to an exit in an emergency situation. Furthermore, as firefighters progress farther into a structure, more time elapses, which means the fire is more developed, hotter, and often closer to flashover. Collapse becomes more likely because of the increased damage from the fire.

As today's firefighters' collective experience in fighting fires continues to diminish, there is great concern in the firefighter community that the inability to recognize flashover and building collapse-and to react quickly enough to avoid being caught by these two potentially fatal conditions-will continue to result in injuries and fatalities to firefighters.

While ongoing prevention efforts, realistic training, effective policy development, and firefighter discipline all can help reduce the risks of injury and death on the job, the inherent dangers of firefighting require that fire departments prepare for one of the most difficult assignments of all: rescuing one of their own. The use of rapid intervention teams (RIT)-the subject of this report-can facilitate these rescues when an emergency occurs. Rapid intervention teams are created specifically to rescue lost and trapped firefighters; rescue of civilians is the responsibility of other crews on the fire ground. There are different versions of RIT in communities throughout the country.

RAPID INTERVENTION TEAMS -- (1.2 Mb)

This report provides the ground work for developing or improving the use of RITs by fire departments. Included within the report are guidelines; suggested staffing levels and associated responsibilities; recommended training and equipment; and notes on the deployment of a RIT on the fire ground.

We contacted a group of fire departments by mail, interviewed fire department personnel, talked to individuals who teach firefighter rescue nationally, and performed an extensive literature review to discover how firefighter rescue currently is planned and implemented out. The results of this research are incorporated into this report.