When you go to the roof, what information do you include when you make your report on conditions? Considering the varieties of answers that question elicits, it’s clear that firefighters can be all over the map when it comes to delivering this essential report.
Every department’s truckies report something different, depending on their standard operating procedures (SOPs). Sometimes, there’s even a difference among truck companies at the same department. The thing is, the truck company officer is in an excellent position to give the incident commander (IC) a better size-up on the fire, as long as they make a complete report.
Here to explain what should be reported and why is Battalion Chief Gibby Gorman with the city of Maricopa (Arizona) Fire/Medical Department. Gorman has over 30 years of experience in the fire service. Before his time in Maricopa, he worked for Tempe (Arizona) Fire and Medical for 27 years, where he was a captain of a busy downtown truck company. He developed regional ladder training programs and was a member of Tempe’s Technical Rescue Team for 12 years and the department’s SCUBA rescue team for 8 years.
