By STUART GRANT and LES STEPHENS
Firefighters are ingenious people and are always trying to improve the way they do business. Presented here are several techniques to help you do a job more efficiently. Before using any of these suggestions, make sure they are approved by your department’s administration. Run them by your officer or discuss them around the kitchen table. Remember that modifying tools or using them for a purpose for which they were not designed may void the manufacturer’s warranty and could expose you to injury.
HALLIGAN BAR UNDER PRY BAR TO RAISE GARAGE DOOR
Many times trying to pry garage or overhead doors up with a straight pry bar is difficult or even impossible. One way to create a fulcrum that will enable you to do this job easier is to lay your halligan bar down with the adz and pick end in a position that forms an “A” (photo 1). This creates a base where you can rest your pry bar. Now it should be no trouble developing the leverage to lift the door (photo 2). You may find many other applications for this tool combination once you understand the basic application.
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COAT HANGER TO OPEN GARAGE DOOR
Today, most residential garage doors are equipped with some type of garage door opener. For the garage door opener to function properly, the door itself must be left in the unlocked position. The only thing between you and simply raising the door is the connection between the door and the opening device. Most of you know the red “T-handle” release on garage door openers. What most firefighters fail to realize during emergency operations is that with the door closed, the T-handle is only inches inside the top of a residential garage door.
To release the handle, simply find the door’s center and push inward. Use a coat hanger to hook and pull the T-handle toward you. If this doesn’t work, use the pick of an ax or the point of your halligan to make a hole in the upper garage door panel (photo 3).
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Next, insert the coat hanger with a hook bent on the end of it to grab the T-handle (photo 4). Pull on the rope to release the opening mechanism from the door so you can raise the door (photos 5, 6). Don’t forget to use your locking pliers to secure the door in the open position prior to entry.
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OPENING TRUNK LATCH WITH SCREWDRIVER OR DIPSTICK
Some of you may remember this “trick” from Fire Engineering’s “Bread and Butter” video on vehicle fires by Bill Gustin. First, remove the lock cylinder mechanism from the trunk by pulling it out with a lock puller or driving it in with the pick end of a halligan (photo 7). Once the lock is out of the way, you can use a long screwdriver or the car’s dipstick to manipulate the lock (photos 8, 9, 10).
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USING CAR ANTENNA TO BREAK TEMPERED GLASS
Tempered glass is used in a variety of ways. It is in vehicles, skylights, shower enclosures, windows, and even coffee pots. It is four to five times stronger than annealed glass and all that is needed is a sudden impact from a sharp object or a very small impact area to break it. It takes approximately 24,000 psi of force to fracture this impact area.
Automatic center punches, an ax pick, and a halligan’s pick are all excellent choices to break tempered glass. If you do not have one of these tools, a vehicle’s antenna will work. Remove the antenna from the vehicle, grasp the base, and whip it so the tip strikes the tempered glass. This should shatter the tempered glass (photo 11). Since there will not be a “pushing” force behind the glass, as there is with a halligan or an ax, the glass should fall straight down without causing injury.
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HOW TO HOLD AND CRADLE CUT WITH RESCUE SAW
Cutting with rescue saws can be a daunting task if the cuts need to be made high or low. If the cuts are head high or above, grab the handle attached to the front of the saw on the side so that when the saw is positioned above your head, you are pushing up on the saw and not trying to “muscle” the saw with your hands and wrists. By balancing the saw this way, you can still operate the throttle with your other hand. Having another firefighter behind you for support increases your operating efficiency (photo 12).
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If the cut is around waist level, position the saw with a cradle hold. Bend your arm like you are going to cradle the saw. Grab the handle on the saw’s front and cradle it. Watch out for the saw’s muffler. If it is in your way, flip the saw over and cradle it with the other arm and hand (photo 13). This also frees your other hand to operate the throttle in the handle.
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SWITCH HANDS WITH CHAIN SAW
Firefighters are creatures of habit. For example, a right-handed firefighter will usually grab a tool a certain way. The same is true if he is left-handed. The problem is that he will continue with the same hand position throughout the task. Most times to complete the task, your hands must bend in awkward positions, and sometimes they are positioned in dangerous spots. If you switch hand positions on the saw or tool, your hands could move from the right side to the left side without your having to be a contortionist (photos 14, 15).
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HALLIGAN TO ASSIST WITH VEHICLE HOOD
Vehicle fires present many difficulties, from air bags to compressed cylinders to hybrid vehicles. Many times during a vehicle fire, the handle and cable that release the hood are either inaccessible or melted, or the heat has rendered them unusable. Therefore, employ another method to open the hood to extinguish an engine compartment fire or at least to check that the fire has not entered the engine compartment.
To accomplish this, locate the cable that leads to the hood latch in the grille area. Once you have located the cable, insert the halligan forks so that the cable is between the forks. Next, turn the halligan so that it pulls on the cable (photos 16, 17). This will release the latch and thus release the hood. You will still have to manipulate the safety latch, but this generally doesn’t give you any problems. Be careful working in front of the vehicle because the bumper shocks may have been exposed to the fire!
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GETTING THROUGH DEAD BOLT WITHOUT DESTROYING DOOR
During forcible entry operations, many doors are totally destroyed. Most of the time, this is not necessary. With a little finesse, you can gain entry without causing costly damage.
First, use a spreading tool such as a hydraulic hand-operated device to slightly spread the doors apart or the door from the door frame. You can also use the halligan adz. Insert the adz between the doors and push down on the halligan bar. Both of these methods will spread the door apart and give you some operating room (photo 18).
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Next, use a reciprocating saw to cut the latch that goes between the doors or the door and the frame. If a reciprocating saw is unavailable, use a rotary saw with a metal blade (photo 19). This will get you inside; the only damage inflicted will be to the door latch, not the door. The property owner will have to replace only the latch or re-key the property. He will be very appreciative of the extra effort.
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USING HALLIGAN FOR FIRST-FLOOR WINDOW ACCESS
Sometimes first-floor windows are difficult to access but are not worth getting a ground ladder for. Step on your halligan to help you access higher first-floor windows. Shove the fork end into the ground about six to eight inches away from the wall. Lean the adz and pick end into the wall to make an “A” (photo 20). You now have a step to help you gain access (photo 21). Once inside, don’t forget to reach outside and retrieve your halligan. You might need it!
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QUICK AND EASY SETUP FOR FIVE-INCH SUPPLY HOSE
A universal belief in the fire service is that firefighters are always looking to make standard operations more efficient. Nothing is more “standard” than hooking a supply line to the hydrant. One trick is to fold the last five feet of supply hose twice over on itself. This creates several layers of hose with the coupling protected by the hose’s two folds.
Next, take an old set of seat belts off a backboard or stretcher and run them around the five-inch hose and buckle them (photo 22). Take a 12- to 15-foot length of webbing and tie the two ends together with a water knot. Run one end of the webbing loop around the hose near where the coupling is secured inside the folded hose and back through the webbing itself. Leave the webbing hanging so it is easily accessible from the ground (photo 23).
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When hooking a hydrant, pull the supply hose down from the hosebed, using the webbing, and then throw the loop over the hydrant (photo 24). After the engine pulls off, unbuckle the seat belts, and you will have plenty of hose to make your connection.
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Do not leave the tools in the end of the hose. This short cut could lead to costly pump damage, so use a standard hydrant bag attached to the hose.
STUART GRANT is a 29-year fire service veteran and a battalion chief with Dallas (TX) Fire Rescue. He is a leader for TX-TF-2, a certified master firefighter, and a fire instructor with the Texas Commission on Fire Protection. He has served his department as an academy commander, a hazmat officer, a paramedic, and a rope rescue member. He has been an FDIC H.O.T. instructor and speaker, and he instructs at Collin County (TX) Community College and at the Texas A&M University Municipal Fire School. He has two associate degrees and a bachelor’s degree in fire administration.
LES STEPHENS is a 17-year fire service veteran and a battalion chief with the Garland (TX) Fire Department. He is a certified master firefighter and instructor with the Texas Commission on Fire Protection. He has served as his department’s training instructor and is an instructor at Collin County (TX) Community College, FDIC, and Texas A&M University Municipal Fire School. He has an associate degree in fire protection from Tarrant County Community College.
