ON FIRE ❘ by MICHAEL N. CIAMPO
Automatic fire alarms are commonplace among many of our responses. We all have at least one building that seems to be as regular as Old Faithful, and the call usually comes in at the most inopportune time. Unfortunately, many of us have or will let our guard down, and these responses become more of a nuisance than an actual emergency, yet you can bet at one time they’re going to be the real deal. How you arrive and act will determine if it’s a simple reset or a long, drawn-out affair.
Odors and Hazes
Investigating an odor or a haze is going to be one of the normal occurrences for alarm activation runs. A smoke detector head going off on the fourth floor of a hotel, assisted living facility, or apartment building should register on the fire alarm panel in the lobby or fire control room. How you deal with the situation is going to be the first-arriving officer’s call. Hopefully, you don’t just try for the alarm reset and go on your merry way; it’s time to investigate and find out the “whys” of the activation.
Some panels will tell you a specific head’s location, whether it be the north or south hallway, east or west wing, elevator lobby, or stairwell. Gathering that information before you head upstairs will help you focus where to start your search. When you arrive on the floor, don’t haphazardly begin your investigation; try to find the smoke detector with the red light that’s solid or flashing. That will help pinpoint a location to start looking for clues to the activation.
If that area is close to a few apartment doors and you smell an odor of burnt food, burning paper, or melting plastic, begin knocking. Don’t expect an answer from an embarrassed tenant; or, maybe there’s nobody home and the pot is smoldering on the stove.
When an odor hasn’t dissipated or you still have a good haze on the entire floor and nobody is owning up to it, try another method of investigation. With a halligan tool or officer’s tool, wedge the adz end into the door handle side of the frame, a foot or so below the top. Then, pull down on the tool’s handle; this creates a gap at the top of the door and down the side for a foot or so. Hold a flashlight up to the gap to see if any smoke is drifting out of the apartment. You can also put your nose into the gap on the side of the door and smell if the odor is strong. If you only have a hook, jam the pointed end or pry end into the top of the frame in the same location and move the hook’s handle to create the gap. When the stairwell doors are open and you’re venting the hallway, this tactic usually allows you to feel a draft from the apartment door and pulls the odor your way. This tactic is also a great way to find a gas leak on a floor when you’re trying to find the specific apartment in a large multiple dwelling.
The Unusual Odors
Often, when responding to these alarms, you’ll pick up an odor that isn’t as common as the smell of burnt food or natural gas. When you get to a specific floor or even when you’re heading into the lobby, you’ll pick up the odor. In office buildings, some of the more common issues setting off the automatic fire alarm may be the smoke from a burned-out pulley or belt from a circulating motor for the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system (HVAC). In many of these instances, the smell and haze of burning rubber from a belt direct us to ask building maintenance for the motor’s location or to shut down the system to stop the spread of the smoke throughout the entire building. The thermal imaging camera (TIC) can also help find these motor locations under a drop ceiling. Often, these HVAC systems may be run by natural gas, and there could be a defect with one of the units on the roof. If you find an odor of gas on numerous floors of a large three-story office building, don’t be afraid to ask maintenance workers about the presence of these systems.
When responding to these types of structures, also be aware of some other oddball events that can trigger the alarm. If work is being performed in the area on a water main or if the alarm company is working on the system, a drop in pressure or the opening of a drain to flush the system can cause the alarm to trigger. Although a water flow alarm heightens our awareness level, because there’s an actual flow, these alarms can often be set off in error.
A fire alarm run we encountered in an office building had us focused on a sewage problem: The ripe smell of rotten eggs, which we normally associate with sewage, was present as we made our way down to the basement stairs. When the maintenance worker opened the locked door, the haze was a few feet off the ceiling and tasted horrible.
Suddenly, our simple sewage problem was escalating into a smoke investigation. As we proceeded into the basement with our face pieces donned, we spotted a solid light on a smoke detector in front of a doorway. On the door was a sign: “No water; sealed batteries inside.” When we opened the door, white smoke was down to the floor and the TIC showed us overheating batteries in racks supported off the floor. Luckily, there was an emergency shut-off in the room and, over time, we were able to ventilate the area and remove the hazard.
Be prepared. Smells and bells calls will be with you your entire career. Don’t let a simple alarm investigation turn into a multiple alarm because you were too lazy to check it out.
MICHAEL N. CIAMPO is a 36-year veteran of the fire service and a lieutenant in the Fire Department of New York. Previously, he served with the District of Columbia Fire Department. He has a bachelor’s degree in fire science from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City. He is the lead instructor for the FDIC International Truck Essentials H.O.T. program. He wrote the Ladders and Ventilation chapters for Fire Engineering’s Handbook for Firefighter I and II (Fire Engineering, 2009) and the Bread and Butter Portable Ladders DVD and is featured in “Training Minutes” truck company videos.
