Glossary of Fire Fighting Terms (P to Z)

P

* Personal alert safety system: See PASS device in Glossary of firefighting equipment.

* Personnel Accountability Report ("PAR"): End-result of personnel accountability system. Best report is all hands, AOK, worse is squad missing. You will often hear command ask for a "PAR" when something has changed on the fireground. Often the reply will be something like, "Engine 4, PAR." or "Engine 4 has PAR."

* Personnel accountability system: Tag, 'passport', or other system for identification and tracking of personnel at an incident, especially those entering and leaving an IDLH area; intended to permit rapid determination of who may be at risk or lost during sudden changes at the scene.

* Platoon: a subdivision of a fire company, led a fire officer of either the rank of captain or lieutenant, such that one of several platoons is assigned to duty for a specified period. Also called a "watch". In many areas the word "platoon" is used to describe the different shifts in the fire department. For example, A, B or C Platoon.

* Positive pressure: Pressure at higher than atmospheric; used in SCBA facepieces and in smoke-proof stairwells to reduce entry of smoke or fumes through small openings. High volume, portable Positive Pressure Ventilation fans are now carried by fire departments and used to pressurize the fire building during interior attack to control smoke and heat ventilation at desired points.

* Pre-arrival instructions:

* Pre-fire, pre-incident planning: Information collected by fire prevention officers to assist in identifying hazards and the equipment, supplies, personnel, skills, and procedures needed to deal with a potential incident.

* Pre-planning: Fire protection strategy involving visits to potentially hazardous occupancies for inspection, followup analysis and recommendations for actions to be taken in case of specific incidents. Not to be confused with post-planning.

* "Probie:" (also rookie) new firefighter on employment probation (a period of time during which his or her skills are improved, honed, tested, and evaluated).

* "Professional Firefighter:" All firefighters are classified as "professionals" by both the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) and the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF trade union). All firefighters are required by most state laws and general practice to meet the same training and equipment standards, take the same examinations for promotion and perform the same work under the same hazards. There are two accepted categories of Professional Firefighters--Volunteer Firefighters who may or may not receive pay for services and Career Firefighters whose primary employment and source of earned income is in the fire service.

* Public alarm: Means for public to report a fire, includes telephone, street-corner pull-boxes, building pull-stations, and manual bells or sirens in rural areas.

* Pump operator, technician: (also a chauffeur): person responsible for operating the pumps on a pumper and typically for driving the pumper to an incident.

* Pump Escape: Appliance carrying a wheeled ladder

* Pumper company: Squad or company that mans a fire engine (pumper) and carries out duties involving getting water to the fire.

* Pyrolysis: Process of converting a solid substance to combustible fumes by raising its temperature. See also vaporization of liquids.

R

* Radiant extension: fire that has transferred ignition heat to adjacent materials across open space. One reason some city fire codes prohibit windows facing each other in adjacent warehouses.

* Rapid entry team: See FAST.

* Rapid Intervention Crew/Group/Team (RIC, RIG, or RIT): This is a standby crew whose purpose is to go in for the rescue of firefighters in trouble. While all of these versions of the name for a firefighter rescue crew either have been used or continue to be used in several areas, the National Incident Management System (NIMS) has adopted the term Rapid Intervention Crew/Company, ("RIC") to be the standard in the Incident Command System (ICS). Currently, U.S. federally required training programs, from DHS and FEMA, are in the process of standardizing many terms and procedures under NIMS. See: FAST

* Ready team: A company of firefighters waiting to be relieve another company.

* Recovery: Location and removal of deceased victims. Also, the time needed for a firefighter to spend in rehab before being considered ready to continue working the incident.

* Reflash, re-kindle: A situation in which a fire, thought to be extinguished, resumes burning.

* Reflash Watch: A person assigned to observe and monitor an extinguished fire, to ensure that it does not reflash or re-kindle.

* Rehab, Rehabilitation sector: An area for physical and mental recuperation at a fire scene, usually equipped with beverages, and chairs, isolated from environmental extremes (cold, heat, noise, smoke). This rest area enables firefighters to relax, cool off (or warm up) and regain hydration by way of preventing injury. An EMT may be assigned to monitor firefighter vitals when they enter and leave rehab. See: Fire department rehab

* Rescue: Physical removal of a live person or animal from danger to a place of comfort.

* Rescue company: Squad of firefighters trained and equipped to enter adverse conditions and rescue victims of an incident. Often delegated to a truck company.

* Residential sprinkler system: A sprinkler system arranged for fire suppression in a dwelling.

* Residual pressure: The amount of pressure in a hydrant system when a hydrant is fully open, such as during a fire; should be engineered to provide domestic supply of water to homes and businesses during a large fire in the district.

* Reverse lay: The process of stringing hose from a fire toward a source of water, i.e., a fire hydrant.

* Run card system: A system of pre-planning for fire protection in which information about specific detectors, hazards, or other emergency response plans is indexed by location, for rapid reference during an alarm.

* Running Call A call 'Shout' with persons reported

S

* SAR: See Search and rescue.

* Salvage, salvage cover: Heavy-duty tarpaulins folded or rolled for quick deployment to cover personal property subjected to possible water or other damage during firefighting.

* Scene safety: Steps taken at or near an emergency scene to reduce hazards and prevent further injuries to workers, victims or bystanders.

* Scuttle hatch: Ready-made opening in roof that can be opened for vertical ventilation.

* Search and rescue (or SAR): Entering a fire building or collapse zone for an orderly search for victims and removal of live victims. Becomes "recovery" if victims are not likely to be found alive.

* Secondary containment:

* Sector: A physical or operational division of an incident; an area supervised as a branch in the Incident Command System. A typical system for structure fires names the "front" of the building "sector A", and continues clockwise around the building (B, C, D), with interior sectors denoted by the floor number (1, 2, 3, etc.). A "rehab" sector is one example of an operational division at an incident, where personnel are assigned after strenuous work in another sector.

* Shoulder load: The amount of hose a single firefighter can pull off a hose wagon or pumper truck and carry toward the fire.

* Sides A, B, C, and D: Terms used by firefighters labeling the multiple sides of a building starting with side A or Alpha being the front of the structure and working its way around the outside of the structure in a clockwise direction. This labels the front side A or Alpha, the left side B or Bravo, the rear side C or Charlie, and the right side D or Delta.

* Size-up: initial evaluation of an incident, in particular a determination of immediate hazards to responders, other lives and property, and what additional resources may be needed. Example: "Two-story brick taxpayer with heavy smoke showing from rear wooden porches and children reported trapped."

* Smoke explosion: See backdraft.

* Smoke-proof stairwell: Building structure which isolates escape stairwells with relatively fireproof walls, self-closing doors, and positive pressure ventilation, to prevent smoke or fumes from entering the stairwell during evacuation of occupants during a fire or other emergency.

* Solid stream: fire stream from round orifice of nozzle. Compare straight stream.

* Staging: sector of incident command where responding resources arrive for assignment to another sector. Often an essential element in personnel accountability program.

* Standard operating procedure, guideline (SOP or SOG): Rules for the operation of a fire department, such as how to respond to various types of emergencies, training requirements, use of protective equipment, radio procedures; often include local interpretations of regulations and standards. In general, "procedures" are specific, whereas "guidelines" are less detailed.

* Static pressure: The pressure in a water system when the water is not flowing.

* Straight stream: Round, hollow stream formed as water passes a round baffle through a round orifice (e.g., on an adjustable nozzle.) Compare solid stream.

* Stretch: command to lay out (and connect) firehose and nozzle.

* Strike Team: a grouping of fire apparatus with a focused goal in a large fire situation. The term is commonly used for structure protection teams during wildland fire operations.

* Structure fire (or "structural fire"): A fire in a residential or commercial building. Urban fire departments are primarily geared toward structural firefighting. The term is often used to distinguish them from wildland fire or other outside fire, and may also refer to the type of training and equipment (e.g., "structure PPE").

T

* Tailboard: Portion at rear of fire engine where firefighters could stand and ride (now considered overly dangerous), or step up to access hoses in the hose bed.

* Tanker: An aircraft equipped to carry water or fire retardant for use in wildland fire suppression. Archaic: see "Tender", below.

* Taxpayer: 1 to 2 story store, or place of business, usually with a residence attached: auto repair, supermarket, tailor, etc.

* Tender (also "Water Tender"): A wheeled fire apparatus equipped to carry large volumes of water to a fire. Often used in areas without an adequate or universal water supply system, such as rural areas without hydrants. Tenders may have pumps and associated hardware to facilitate their mission. Some departments refer to these apparatus as "Tankers."

* Truck company: a group of firefighters assigned to an apparatus that carries ladders, forcible entry tools, possibly extrication tools and salvage covers, and who are otherwise equipped to perform rescue, ventilation, overhaul and other specific functions at fires; also called "ladder company".

* Turnout Gear: The protective clothing worn by firefighters

* Two-in, two-out (or "two in/two out": Refers to the standard safety tactic of having one team of two firefighters enter a hazardous zone (IDLH), while at least two others stand by outside in case the first two need rescue — thus requiring a minimum of four firefighters on scene prior to starting interior attack. Also refers to the "buddy system" in which firefighters never enter or leave a burning structure alone.

* Type I, II, III, IV, V Building - U.S. classification system for fire resistance of building construction types, including definitions for "resistive" Type I, "non-combustible" Type II, "ordinary" Type III, heavy timber Type IV, and "frame construction" Type V (i.e., made entirely of wood).

U

* Under Control: Fire or spill etc. is no longer spreading. The situation is contained. This term should not be confused with a report that the fire is out.

* Underground storage tank:

* Universal precautions: The use of safety barriers (gloves, mask, goggles) to limit an emergency responder's contact with contaminants, especially fluids of injured patients.

V

* Vapor pressure:

* Vapor suppression: Process of reducing the amount of flammable or other hazardous vapors, from a flammable liquid, mixing with air, typically by careful application of a foam blanket on top of a pool of material.

* Vehicle fire: Type of fire involving motor vehicles themselves, their fuel or cargo; has peculiar issues of rescue, explosion sources, toxic smoke and runoff, and scene safety.

* Ventilation: Important procedure in firefighting in which the hot smoke and gases are removed from inside a structure, either by natural convection or forced, and either through existing openings or new ones provided by firefighters at appropriate locations (e.g., on the roof). Proper ventilation can save lives and improper ventilation can cause backdraft or other hazards.

* Venturi effect: Creating a partial vacuum using a constricted fluid flow, used in fire equipment for mixing chemicals into water streams, or for measuring flow velocity.

* Vertical ventilation: Ventilation technique making use of the principle of convection in which heated gases naturally rise.

* Voids (building): Enclosed portions of a building where fire can spread undetected.

* Vollie: A volunteer firefighter.

* Volunteer fire department: An organization of part-time firefighters who may or may not be paid for on-call time or firefighting duty time, but who in nearly all states are held to the same professional training standards and take the same examinations to advance in rank as career firefighters. [In some regions, particlarly eastern New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland volunteer fire departments and fire protection districts have independent taxing authority and are equally as well equipped and paid while working as career fire department members.]

W

* Water columning:

* Water drop: A forest fire fighting technique when an aircraft drops a supply of water onto an exposed fire from above.

* Water hammer: Large, damaging shock wave in a water supply system caused by shutting a valve quickly, or by permitting a vehicle to drive across an unprotected fire hose.

* Well Involved: Term of size-up meaning fire, heat and smoke in a structure are so widespread that internal access must wait until fire streams can be applied. Well Involved.com Rhode Island & Massachusetts Fireground Photography

* Wet down ceremony: A traditional ceremony for the placing of new apparatus in service. There are several versions of this but it usually includes: pushing the old apparatus out, wetting down the new vehicle and pushing it back into the station. It may also include the moving of the bell to the new apparatus, photos, etc.

* Wildfire or Wildland fire: Fire in forests, grasslands, prairies, or other natural areas, not involving structure fires (although wildland fires may threaten structures or vice versa - see interface zone.) For a complete list of terms used in wildland fire, see Glossary of wildland fire terms.

* Working fire: A fire that is in the process of being suppressed; often a cue for dispatch of additional resources.

* Wye: Device used to split a larger supply line hose into smaller attack line hoses. A gated wye contains valves so that certain lines can be turned on and off.

Z

* Zone: Section of structure indicated on fire alarm control panel where sensor was activated.

By Wikipedia