Ray McCormack compares ‘Stop and Flow’ and ‘Flow and Move’ firefighting techniques
Firefighters should note the remarkable and important differences between “Flow and Move” and “Stop and Flow” interior attack nozzle techniques. With a “Flow and Move” technique, you flow with a fully open nozzle while advancing forward. With a “Stop and Flow” technique, you only flow when the nozzle firefighter is stationary. The advancing portion is typically done with the nozzle bale closed. The term “aggressive interior attack” is based off the “Flow and Move” technique, which many see as the pinnacle of Nozzlemanship.
- Training Minutes: The Backup Firefighter Position
- The Backup Firefighter’s Role in the Initial Fire Attack
- The Second Line: A Backup Line or a Second Attack Line
There are reasons to do both, however the reasons are not the same. “Stop and Flow” is especially good for separated fire areas, when conditions do not require additional flow, or when the line is difficult to advance due to environmental factors or support issues.
With “Stop and Flow,” the stop duration allows for temperature rebound while the firefighter advances closer to the fire area with a closed nozzle. Firefighters must be cognizant of these critical details. Firefighters can get confused by repeatedly opening and closing the bale, which can result in bale closure at an inopportune time. Nozzle flows may be short in duration with minimal effect on cooling and flow path reversal. Not all flow durations and rates will be the same and their effectiveness will vary, which can lead to an unbalanced or stalled advance.
“Stop and Flow” is risky to use under challenging conditions and should be minimized as a standard approach technique. Remember, temperature rebound can be swift once the nozzle is closed and with short duration openings. Cooling depends on the size of the stream impact area, its angle, duration, location of the hit, and stream travel. Intermittent cooling can place extinguishment operations in jeopardy. If you’re not flowing, you’re not cooling.
“Flow and Move” is especially good at keeping fire from coming toward you, cooling continuously, eliminating temperature rebound, and reversing the flow path. We should be using a “Flow and Move” approach because of the constant cooling it provides for the nozzle team as well as reducing the odds of rapid fire events from occurring.
Remember that “Flow and Move” does not have to be used at the initial point of entry or throughout a corridors distance, however it should be the standard technique used to gain control of the approach and place water in the fire area because of the advantage of early distance cooling it can produce.
The nozzle firefighter is the most exposed firefighter on the fireground. We need firefighters to understand the environment they are advancing into. By incorporating a “Flow and Move” nozzle technique, we increase the nozzle team’s safety and effectiveness while eliminating pauses in the advance to the fire area.
The question becomes one of support for the “Flow and Move” nozzle firefighter. The role of the backup firefighter is to support the nozzle firefighter. This second-in-line position calls for assisting the nozzle firefighter so he or she can successfully advance and direct the stream. The support must extend to the physical tasks of moving the line forward, absorbing nozzle reaction force, and managing hose handling characteristics.
Many firefighters are relegated to “Stop and Flow” because their support is doing other tasks, the hose is caught up, or the backup firefighter stages too far away to assist effectively, and as such the nozzle firefighter alone may not be able to employ a “Flow and Move” nozzle technique. When using a “Stop and Flow” technique you must remember that there are gaps in your flow and those gaps allow for fire regrowth, a loss of cooling, the reappearance of fire, and minimize flow path reversal.
There is less nuance in the “Flow and Move” nozzle technique because it’s a failsafe approach that relies on a single decision: when to flow. While it may be hard for some firefighters to incorporate it, this approach needs to be trained on as it provides superior protection and an enhanced extinguishment capability. Hostile conditions and the speed of the fire’s energy coming towards you are a heads up that a constant flow should be used.
Remember, keep flowing until the fire is knocked down. In hallways and other areas, “Flow and Move” provides a cooling approach that keeps temperature rebound at zero and can reverse the flow path. These are all things we want to happen. “Flow and Move” is a technique that every nozzle team should be familiar with and be able to use when necessary.
I am recommending that you use “Flow and Move” because I believe in it. I have seen it work countless times and there is solid data that backs it up. We didn’t always have the data to tell us about nozzle techniques and their effectiveness, however we do now, and the best part is that it works in our favor. If something works in our favor it usually follows that it works in the public’s favor, too, and this does.
Operate in a knowledgeable manner; if conditions are bad, the nozzle needs to remain open. Forward movement will be initiated after flow has begun and will continue as we evaluate the progress we’ve made against current conditions. Flow the line to enhance cooling and to reduce the hazards as you advance. It’s better to flow sooner than later. Don’t wait until an emergency occurs to flow.
Keep Fire in Your Life
RAY McCORMACK is a retired lieutenant and 38-year veteran of the Fire Department of New York. He is the co-creator and editor of Urban Firefighter. He delivered the keynote address “True Values of a Firefighter” at FDIC 2009.
