By Wesley D. Chestnut

Throughout the fire service industry, most fire departments are aware that National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1901, Standard for Automotive Fire Apparatus (2016 ed.), and NFPA 1906, Standard for Wildland Fire Apparatus (2016 ed.), became effective for all apparatus contracted on or after January 1, 2016.

Members of the Fire Apparatus Manufacturers’ Association (FAMA) work hard to help develop these standards. While these standards are very important, they only apply to new apparatus. NFPA 1911, Standard for the Inspection, Maintenance, Testing, and Retirement of In-Service Automotive Fire Apparatus, is as important in that it provides guidance on how to ensure existing apparatus can continue operating in a safe and effective manner.

Background

Several weeks ago, a member of a local fire department approached me about a concern with fire apparatus maintenance within the department in which he served. Through the discussion, it became apparent that the individual was aware of NFPA 1911 but was having difficulty getting other members of the department to understand the value of the document or to use certain recommended practices within the document. I offered to go to the department and his city council meeting to discuss the benefits of using NFPA 1911 as a baseline for a maintenance program. What surprised me was the response. The individual spoke with members of the department, including the chief, about the offer of assistance. Members of the department, including the chief, indicated the department potentially had a negative view of the standard and felt as though the offer of assistance would lead to some form of regulation or management.

As I thought about the conversation and responses more, I felt compelled to write about the importance of having a maintenance program. It is concerning that there may be departments that do not have a maintenance program or do not understand the importance of NFPA 1911. It is true that neither the NFPA nor the federal government mandate adherence to NFPA 1911, but protecting the apparatus, those who ride in it, and those who use the equipment that is installed on it is of the utmost importance.

Operational Use of Fire Apparatus in Brief

Most fire apparatus are expensive and, by design, carry a large amount of weight. While they may not be driven for long periods of time and may be designed and built to standards that apply to new apparatus, the loads they carry and the extreme dynamics to which they are exposed can take a toll on systems such as brakes. Other systems, such as the fire pumping system or aerial device, may not be operated frequently, but this does not mean they are not subject to the extreme conditions to which fire apparatus are exposed. In more rural fire departments where the call volume may be low and the apparatus is not driven or operated frequently, items such as tires, pump seals, and other elastomeric components may suffer from simply not being used.

Values of Maintenance, Inspection, and In-Service Testing

A maintenance, inspection, and in-service testing program is essential to protecting the lives of the people who use the apparatus as well as prolonging the life of the apparatus. This goes beyond oil changes, checking air pressure in the tires, and making sure the water tank is not leaking. A checklist identifying inspection or maintenance criteria for critical systems of the apparatus should be implemented. Just because the call volume is low and the apparatus does not get exposed to a large number of hours of service does not mean the need for this checklist is negated.

Frequent maintenance and inspections do come with a cost. However, identify

Running calls-that’s what the Kentland (MD) Volunteer Fire Department in Prince George’s County is all about.

And, Kentland’s busiest unit is its rescue engine, a Pierce Dash heavy-duty rescue-pumper. This hybrid unit was purchased in 2000 to serve a dual role. First was to supply a much-needed extrication and rescue unit for one of the busiest areas of the Washington, D.C., Capitol Beltway, and surrounding roadways. Second was to provide a backup unit to the busy engine company out of the firehouse located on Landover Road. After a long vetting process with the county fire department, the apparatus was granted status to run as a rescue squad and an engine company on the dispatch run cards. This created a very active and well-traveled rig that responded to all types of incidents within the county and beyond during its 15 years of service.

Surprise Ending

April 6, 2015, was just another busy day for the members of Kentland and the entire Prince George’s County Fire/EMS Department-one of the largest combination departments in the country. There are 860 career firefighters and 1,600 volunteers that respond to an estimated 142,000 calls each year. They protect more than 500 square miles out of 45 fire stations. Like any other active day, fire and emergency medical service (EMS) units were busy responding all over the county. Units were clearing a fire in the Kettering section of the county when another box alarm was struck for a commercial building fire on Ashwood Drive in Company 37’s area. Four engine companies, two ladder trucks, two command officers, and Kentland’s rescue-engine were dispatched by the communications center.

Units had no doubt they were going to work as a very large column of black smoke could be seen from the area. As units arrived on the scene, a request for a second alarm was transmitted because the fire involved a number of vehicles, roofing materials, a storage yard, and a building. The department has a set of standard operating procedures that dictates apparatus placement on building fires and each unit’s responsibilities on arrival. Rescue Engine 33, acting as the second-arriving special, was assigned to side C of the structure. They positioned on side C of the D exposure about 300 feet from the fire building. To execute their objectives, they had to cut through a number of protective fences for the large number of commercial properties in this location.

1 The Kentland (MD) Fire Department’s Rescue Engine 33, a 2000 Pierce Dash heavy-duty rescue-pumper. [Photos courtesy of the Kentland (MD) Fire Department unless otherwise noted.]

The officer in charge (OIC) of Rescue Engine 33 gave returns (radio reports) on the conditions of the fire building and the multiple exposure buildings. Although there was some heat from the fire, the conditions in the storage yard were tenable. As other units began to arrive and worked to establish a water supply in the rear, the crew of the rescue engine was able to examine and report the conditions of the fire building and exposures. Approximately eight minutes into the incident, the winds shifted toward side C, and conditions immediately deteriorated to near-zero visibility and high heat.

As the fire reached pallets in the rear, the storage yard of foam-type insulation panels became a flaming, molten liquid that began to follow the path of the terrain, igniting everything it touched. Within seconds, what had been a tenabl