The document discusses considerations for fighting fires in special occupancies and situations. It covers basement and cellar fires, garden apartments, row houses, renovated buildings, hotels, vacant buildings, and wildland urban interface fires. For each topic, it discusses preplanning considerations, strategies and tactics, size-up factors, and strategic goals and tactics for offensive and defensive attacks.

1. Strategic and Tactical
Considerations on the Fireground
4th Edition
Chapter 7 — Special Situations and Occupancies

2. Learning Objectives
7.1 Understand the special occupancies discussed and the
types of fires that may confront firefighters.
7.2 Identify pertinent characteristics of these occupancies.
7.3 Recognize the 13 points of size-up that pertain to these
special occupancies.
7.4 Recognize the strategic considerations of these special
occupancies.
7.5 Understand the incident management considerations of
special occupancies.

3. Basement and Cellar Fires (1 of 9)
‣ Question to ask students:
‣ What is the correct method of using a cellar pipe to attack a
cellar or basement fire?

4. Basement and Cellar Fires (2 of 9)
‣ Preplan considerations
‣ Doorways
‣ Recognizing a cellar fire

5. Basement and Cellar Fires (3 of 9)
‣ Strategy and tactics
‣ Sprinklers
‣ Entrance
‣ Interior stairs
‣ Descending cellar steps

6. Basement and Cellar Fires (4 of 9)
‣ Proper use of resources
‣ Closer contact
‣ Breathing apparatus
‣ Check all floors above

7. Basement and Cellar Fires (5 of 9)
‣ Cellar pipes and distributors
‣ High-expansion foam
‣ Ventilation

8. Basement and Cellar Fires (6 of 9)
‣ Figure 7-1 An alternative method of ventilating a basement is by cutting a hole in
the floor beneath a window on the first floor and using a hose-line on fog to
hydraulically push the smoke to the exterior.

9. Basement and Cellar Fires (7 of 9)
‣ Size-up factors for cellar fires
‣ Water
‣ Area
‣ Life hazard
‣ Location, extent

10. Basement and Cellar Fires (8 of 9)
‣ Apparatus, personnel
‣ Construction/collapse
‣ Exposure
‣ Weather
‣ Auxiliary appliances
‣ Special matters
‣ Height
‣ Occupancy
‣ Time

11. Basement and Cellar Fires (9 of 9)
‣ Considerations for fires in basements and cellars
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for an offensive
attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
an offensive attack
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for a defensive attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
a defensive attack

12. Garden Apartments (1 of 8)
‣ Question to ask students:
‣ What factors can cause a fire to burn out of control at a
garden apartment fire?

13. Garden Apartments (2 of 8)
‣ Construction
‣ Roof assemblies
‣ Access
‣ Problems
‣ Fire considerations
‣ Fire travel

14. Garden Apartments (3 of 8)
‣ Fire travel
‣ Fire burning out of control
‣ Fires can burn out of control due to insufficient
resources, lack of an adequate water supply, late
discovery of fire, an incendiary fire, flammable liquids,
poor plan of attack, and poor construction.

15. Garden Apartments (4 of 8)
‣ Storage areas
‣ Roof fires

16. Garden Apartments (5 of 8)
‣ Operations
‣ Fire attack
‣ Coordinated ventilation with the interior crews
‣ Aggressive offensive attack
‣ Determining whether an offensive attack is the correct
mode
‣ Preplanning

17. Garden Apartments (6 of 8)
‣ Size-up factors for garden apartments
‣ Water
‣ Area
‣ Life hazard
‣ Location, extent

18. Garden Apartments (7 of 8)
‣ Apparatus, personnel
‣ Construction/collapse
‣ Exposure
‣ Weather
‣ Auxiliary appliances
‣ Special matters
‣ Height
‣ Occupancy
‣ Time

19. Garden Apartments (8 of 8)
‣ Considerations for fires in garden apartments
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for an offensive
attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
an offensive attack
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for a defensive attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
a defensive attack

20. Row Houses and Town Houses (1 of 11)
‣ Question to ask students:
‣ What dangers are firefighters confronted with when fighting
fires in buildings that contain light and air shafts?

21. Row Houses and Town Houses (2 of 11)
‣ They share common party walls.
‣ They can be ordinary or frame construction.

22. Row Houses and Town Houses (3 of 11)
‣ Interior wall construction
‣ Bearing walls
‣ Continuous voids
‣ Steep stairs, narrow hallways
‣ Transoms

23. Row Houses and Town Houses (4 of 11)
‣ Firefighting practices
‣ Gain access to adjacent property.
‣ First-due engine and truck to the front, second-due engine
and truck to the rear
‣ Coordination and communication

24. Row Houses and Town Houses (5 of 11)
‣ Offensive attack should be attempted.
‣ Manual stretching of hose-lines to the upper
floors—extra hose-line must be added to the stretch.
‣ Good practice: Stretch a 2½-inch or 3-inch hose-line and
attach a gated-wye to break down to 1½- or
1¾-inch hose-lines.

25. Row Houses and Town Houses (6 of 11)
‣ Building fronts
‣ Combustible porches
‣ Hose-line deployment
‣ Interconnection between the porch roof and void spaces
‣ Combustible frame rears

26. Row Houses and Town Houses (7 of 11)
‣ Truck company operations
‣ Light and air shafts
‣ Overhead electric wires

27. Row Houses and Town Houses (8 of 11)
‣ Size-up factors for row house and town
house fires
‣ Water
‣ Area
‣ Life hazard
‣ Location, extent

28. Row Houses and Town Houses (9 of 11)
‣ Apparatus, personnel
‣ Construction/collapse
‣ Exposure
‣ Weather
‣ Auxiliary appliances

29. Row Houses and Town Houses (10 of 11)
‣ Size-up factors for row house and town
house fires
‣ Special matters
‣ Height
‣ Occupancy
‣ Time

30. Row Houses and Town Houses (11 of 11)
‣ Considerations for fires in row houses and
town houses
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for an offensive
attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
an offensive attack
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for a defensive attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
a defensive attack

31. Renovated Buildings (1 of 10)
‣ Question to ask students:
‣ When considering size-up factors for renovated buildings, list
at least five “construction/collapse” concerns that a firefighter
would have to consider.

32. Renovated Buildings (2 of 10)
‣ Renovations can affect the firefighter’s ability to control and
extinguish a fire.
‣ Temporary shoring

33. Renovated Buildings (3 of 10)
‣ Firefighting
‣ Fire can be difficult to suppress.
‣ An exterior attack may be the only option.
‣ Sprinkler and standpipe system may be out of service—
hose-lines will have to be stretched longer.

34. Renovated Buildings (4 of 10)
‣ Ventilation
‣ Brick or glass block can seal basement or cellar windows.
‣ Drywall or paneling may cover windows on upper floors.

35. Renovated Buildings (5 of 10)
‣ Roofs
‣ Sawtooth roofs
‣ Plywood or oriented strand board roof coverings
‣ Lightweight roof directly over the old roof

36. Renovated Buildings (6 of 10)
‣ Figure 7-19 Commercial or loft buildings with 20-foot ceilings and higher are often
converted to apartments, with two stories made from each original floor level. These
changes will not be recognizable from the exterior or the elevator lobbies.

37. Renovated Buildings (7 of 10)
‣ Partition fires
‣ Unprotected interconnected shafts
‣ Indicators of partition fires
‣ Continued heat and smoke generation
‣ Smoke pushing from moldings and electrical outlets
and switches
‣ Discoloration of plaster

38. Renovated Buildings (8 of 10)
‣ Size-up factors for renovated buildings
‣ Water
‣ Area
‣ Life hazard
‣ Location, extent
‣ Apparatus, personnel
‣ Construction/collapse
‣ Exposure
‣ Weather
‣ Auxiliary appliances

39. Renovated Buildings (9 of 10)
‣ Special matters
‣ Height
‣ Occupancy
‣ Time

40. Renovated Buildings (10 of 10)
‣ Considerations for fires in renovated buildings
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for an offensive
attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
an offensive attack
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for a defensive attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
a defensive attack

41. Hotels and Motels (1 of 10)
‣ Protective systems
‣ Standpipes

42. Hotels and Motels (2 of 10)
‣ Question to ask students:
‣ At a hotel or motel fire, what should be contained in the initial
interior assessment given to the Incident Commander by the
first units entering the building?

43. Hotels and Motels (3 of 10)
‣ Life safety
‣ Multiple- or mass-casualty incidents
‣ Access to interior

44. Hotels and Motels (4 of 10)
‣ Strategic and tactical considerations
‣ Size-up and exterior 360-degree walk-around
‣ Aggressive attack on the fire should be the aim of the first-
arriving units on the fire floor.
‣ Immediately assign a company to check the room directly
over the fire room.

45. Hotels and Motels (5 of 10)
‣ Fire spread
‣ Pipe chase or void space
‣ Lack of fire-stopping, draft-stopping
‣ Fire burning through the floor
‣ Fire lapping out of windows

46. Hotels and Motels (6 of 10)
‣ Ventilation
‣ Horizontal ventilation
‣ Should be considered early
‣ Roof-top exit, skylight
‣ Coordination of ventilation with the attacking hose-lines

47. Hotels and Motels (7 of 10)
‣ Overhaul and salvage
‣ Evacuation

48. Hotels and Motels (8 of 10)
‣ Size-up factors for hotels and motels
‣ Water
‣ Area
‣ Life hazard
‣ Location, extent
‣ Apparatus, personnel
‣ Construction/collapse
‣ Exposure
‣ Weather
‣ Auxiliary appliances

49. Hotels and Motels (9 of 10)
‣ Special matters
‣ Height
‣ Occupancy
‣ Time

50. Hotels and Motels (10 of 10)
‣ Considerations for fires in hotels and motels
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for an offensive
attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
an offensive attack
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for a defensive attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
a defensive attack

51. Vacant Buildings (1 of 10)
‣ Question to ask students:
‣ What method of marking vacant buildings to identify and
categorize their structural stability is noted in the text?

52. Vacant Buildings (2 of 10)
‣ Fires in vacant buildings cause more firefighter injuries and
death than other structural fires.

53. Vacant Buildings (3 of 10)
‣ Definitions of vacant buildings
‣ Two types
‣ Structure that has been vacant and is awaiting resale—
structurally sound
‣ Structure that has been vacant for a period of time—
unusable structure

54. Vacant Buildings (4 of 10)
‣ Effects of weather
‣ Marking of buildings
‣ Too dangerous to enter
‣ Dangers exist; enter only if life is threatened.
‣ Minor interior damage; entry can be made, depending
upon fire conditions.

55. Vacant Buildings (5 of 10)
‣ Occupied vacant buildings
‣ Unusable structures that “house” homeless people
‣ Multitude of hazards must be considered.

56. Vacant Buildings (6 of 10)
‣ Firefighting considerations
‣ No building is worth the life of or injury to a firefighter.
‣ All buildings must be sized-up.
‣ A vacant building with known or suspected occupants must
be treated the same as any other occupied structure.
‣ Sealed vacant buildings

57. Vacant Buildings (7 of 10)
‣ Exterior operations
‣ Illegal electric hookups
‣ Possibility of electric shock is high.

58. Vacant Buildings (8 of 10)
‣ Size-up factors for vacant buildings
‣ Water
‣ Area
‣ Life hazard
‣ Location, extent
‣ Apparatus, personnel
‣ Construction/collapse
‣ Exposure
‣ Weather
‣ Auxiliary appliances

59. Vacant Buildings (9 of 10)
‣ Special matters
‣ Height
‣ Occupancy
‣ Time

60. Vacant Buildings (10 of 10)
‣ Considerations for fires in vacant buildings
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for an offensive
attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
an offensive attack
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for a defensive attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
a defensive attack

61. Wildland Urban Interface (1 of 25)
‣ Questions to ask students:
‣ What are the impediments faced by firefighters when fighting
a fire at the wildland urban interface?
‣ Is there a WUI within your district?

62. Wildland Urban Interface (2 of 25)
‣ Wildland: an area in which development is essentially
nonexistent.
‣ Urban: relating to the characteristics of, or constituting a city.

63. Wildland Urban Interface (3 of 25)
‣ Interface: a place where two independent systems meet and
interact with each other.
‣ The mixing of urban and wildland areas creates varied
challenges for firefighters.

64. Wildland Urban Interface (4 of 25)
‣ Housing developments in wildland urban interface (WUI)
areas
‣ Isolation of structures makes firefighting a challenge.
‣ Infrastructure also threatened.
‣ Some aboveground flammable pipelines run through
wildland areas.

65. Wildland Urban Interface (5 of 25)
‣ Firefighting in WUI areas
‣ Main life safety threat is to firefighters.
‣ WALLACE WAS HOT pertains to fighting structural fires in
wildland areas.
‣ Additional concerns exist for fighting the wildland fire.

66. Wildland Urban Interface (6 of 25)
‣ Locating structures in WUI areas
‣ Ability to fight fire starts with accurate address, not always
available in remote areas.
‣ Units from other jurisdictions may be confused by road
layouts and lack of street signs.
‣ Counting mailboxes can help estimate the number of
structures in the area.

67. Wildland Urban Interface (7 of 25)
‣ Access to WUI areas
‣ Areas may have a single access road that can be blocked
by the fire-front.
‣ Blockage may also trap firefighters.
‣ Roads may be narrow, blocked by trees, or structurally
impassable.
‣ Scouting may be required before committing resources.

68. Wildland Urban Interface (8 of 25)
‣ Evacuation of WUI areas
‣ Life safety is top priority.
‣ Forced evacuation is a police duty.
‣ Unwillingness of residents to evacuate places undue
pressure on firefighters.
‣ Plan for secondary exit routes.
‣ Identify structures that may provide protection as the front
passes.

69. Wildland Urban Interface (9 of 25)
‣ Utilities
‣ Electric service may be lost by downed wires or purposely
shut down.
‣ Heavy smoke may cause power lines to arc.
‣ Loss of electricity affects water pumping stations and
private wells.
‣ Communications limited in rural areas; land phone lines
should be kept active.

70. Wildland Urban Interface (10 of 25)
‣ Weather, topography, and fuel for WUI fires
‣ Many types of fuel available with different burning
characteristics.
‣ Area rainfall, wind, and weather impacts fire
characteristics.
‣ Topography affects access and safety of firefighters.

71. Wildland Urban Interface (11 of 25)
‣ Structural versus wildland firefighting
‣ After life safety is accomplished, focus on fire attack.
‣ Wildland areas may be protected by state or federal
firefighters.
‣ Structural fire officers should seek wildland specialist for
assistance.
‣ Wildland fires frequently demand expansion of the incident
command system.

72. Wildland Urban Interface (12 of 25)
‣ Objectives, strategy, and tactics
‣ Objective is to box in the fire or determine an acceptable
perimeter.
‣ Aerial surveillance useful for determining attack strategy.
‣ Aircraft useful for aerial drops.
‣ Dispatcher or EOC reports and weather reports needed for
planning.

73. Wildland Urban Interface (13 of 25)
‣ Determining which structures to protect
‣ Decision must be made on whether to allow some
structures to burn.

74. Wildland Urban Interface (14 of 25)
‣ Must consider
‣ Life safety of firefighters
‣ Proximity of different fuels
‣ Type of building construction
‣ Resources available
‣ Weather
‣ Fire behavior

75. Wildland Urban Interface (15 of 25)
‣ Protecting a building at a WUI fire
‣ Structures that can be saved may be prepared before the
fire-front reaches them.
‣ Firefighters may prep the structure and then leave as the
fire approaches or stay and fight the fire.
‣ Decision to stay or leave must be based on firefighter
safety.

76. Wildland Urban Interface (16 of 25)
‣ Hose-line and Class A foam
‣ Use 1½-inch hose-line.
‣ Set adjustable nozzles to lowest setting.
‣ Two hose-lines act as safety factor.
‣ Hose-lines are used to protect structure.
‣ Class A foam is best for pretreating.
‣ Focus on protection of property, not fire extinguishment.

77. Wildland Urban Interface (17 of 25)
‣ Resource requirements for a WUI fire
‣ More resources required than structural fires.
‣ More time required to acquire resources.
‣ Deploy one engine per structure and one additional for
every five.
‣ Consider aircraft support.

78. Wildland Urban Interface (18 of 25)
‣ Safety considerations at WUI fires
‣ Incident Safety Officer assigned.
‣ Personal protective gear worn at all times, differs from
that used in structural fires.
‣ Fire shelters carried by all firefighters.
‣ Safety zone/refuge area identified.
‣ Water tank kept full with 100 gallons in reserve at all
times.

79. Wildland Urban Interface (19 of 25)
‣ LCES acronym used to remember key safety points.
‣ Lookouts
‣ Communications
‣ Escape routes
‣ Safety zones

80. Wildland Urban Interface (20 of 25)
‣ Preplanning for a WUI fire
‣ Ensure each property has an address.
‣ Careful mapping of area
‣ Identification of areas at high risk of fire
‣ “Ready, Set, Go!” program for educating residents

81. Wildland Urban Interface (21 of 25)
‣ Logistical considerations at a WUI fire
‣ Air unit for refilling SCBA cylinders
‣ Water supply considerations
‣ Refueling of apparatus
‣ Medical attention and feeding of personnel
‣ Communications
‣ Sleeping arrangements
‣ Command Post, Base, and Staging Areas

82. Wildland Urban Interface (22 of 25)
‣ Size-up factors for WUI fires
‣ Water
‣ Area
‣ Life hazard
‣ Location, extent
‣ Apparatus, personnel
‣ Construction/collapse

83. Wildland Urban Interface (23 of 25)
‣ Exposures
‣ Weather
‣ Auxiliary appliances
‣ Special matters
‣ Height
‣ Occupancy
‣ Time

84. Wildland Urban Interface (24 of 25)
‣ Considerations for WUI fires
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities to prepare a structure
for an impending WUI fire attack
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
an impending WUI fire attack

85. Wildland Urban Interface (25 of 25)
‣ Strategic goals and tactical priorities for units returning to
a structure after an attack by a wildland fire
‣ Incident management system considerations/solutions for
units returning to a structure after an attack by a wildland
fire