By Mike Terpak, Deputy Chief and Citywide Tour Commander (Ret.), JCFD

Learn how fireground size-up can make your operations efficient, effective, and safe.

Fire officers have many decisions to make when they approach a scene—decisions that could mean the difference between life and death. Pre-incident information combined with your on-scene size-up give the fire officer the advantage of knowing what to expect when arriving and operating at a fire scene. In this definitive guide to fireground size-up, author Michael A. Terpak gives fire fighters an in-depth and expanded review of 15 size-up points to help them make decisions that are efficient, effective, and safe.

In each different type of building referenced, Terpak covers the following points:

• Construction concerns

• Occupancy

• Apparatus and staffing

• Life hazard

• Terrain

• Water supply

• Auxiliary appliances and aides

• Street conditions

• Weather

• Exposures

• Area

• Location and extent of fire

• Time

• Height

• Special considerations