Wildland Fire Suppression Tactics Reference Guide
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INTRODUCTION TO REFERENCE GUIDE
- FIRE ORDERS
- WATCH OUT SITUATIONS
- LOOKOUTS, COMMUNICATIONS, ESCAPE ROUTES, SAFETY ZONES
SECTION 2—USE OF WATER AND ADDITIVES
- Types of Pumps
- Series, Parallel, and Staged Pumping
- Hose Lays
- Tactical Use of Water
- Class A Foam
SECTION 3—USE OF FIRE IN CONTROL OPERATIONS
- Burning Out and Backfiring
- Types of Fire Spread
- Ignition Techniques
- Strip Firing
- One, Two, Three -Three, Two, One (1-2-3/3-2-1) Firing Concept
- Head and Strip Head Firing
- Blowhole Firing
- Spot Firing
- Ring Firing
- Chevron Firing
- Burn Strip
- Planning and Conducting Firing Operations
- Special Firing Considerations
- Firing Equipment
SECTION 4—MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT
- Comparison of Dozers Used For Fireline Construction
- Dozer Production Rates
- Dozer Line Construction Principles
- Tractor Plows
- Principles of Tractor/Plow Operations
- Mobile Attack
- Tandem Tactic
- Pincer Tactic
- Envelopment Tactic
- Stationary Attack
- Inside-out Tactic
- Parallel Attack
- Engine Production Rates
SECTION 5—TACTICAL AIR OPERATIONS
- Factors Affecting Aircraft Use
- Factors to Consider in Retardant Aircraft Use
- Types, Effects, and Use of Retardant
- Recommended Retardant Coverage Levels
- Retardant Evaluation Criteria
- Air Tanker Tactics
- Principles of Retardant Application
SECTION 6 -WILDLAND/URBAN INTERFACE
- Kinds of Wildland/Urban Interface
- Structural Fire Behavior
- WildlandlUrban Fire Sizeup Considerations
- Structure Triage
- WildlandlUrban Interface Firefighting Tactics
- Structure Full Containment
- Structure Partial Containment
- Structure No Containment
- Structural Firefighting Situations That Shout "Watch
- Structural Watch Out Situations & Triage Made Easier
SECTION 7 -FUELS, FIRE BEHAVIOR, AND TACTICS BY GEOGRAPHIC
AREAS OF THE UNITED STATES
- Northwest and Northern Rocky Mountains
- Southern and Central California
- Great Basin and Southern Rocky Mountains
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
SUPPRESSION TACTICS REFERENCE GUIDE
SECTION 1 -FIRE SUPPRESSION PRINCIPLES (continued)
HOW TO ATTACK A FIRE
If you are the first person to arrive at a fire or a single resource
boss in charge of the first crew at a fire, you have several problems.
You are confronted with deciding; 1) what is the most important work
to do first, and 2) where the most effective work can be done. Keep in
mind at all times that firefighter safety is the highest priority in
After sizing up the fire you need to select an anchor point and make
your attack. Following are some good practices in making an initial attack
or suppressing a large fire.
If you are the incident commander, establish an organization and
command structure. Make sure your subordinates know the plan and are
kept informed on changing conditions, tactics and/or strategies.
Use water or dirt to cool and extinguish hot spots.
Anticipate future control action when the fire cannot be contained
Construct fireline uphill from an anchor point.
As a first effort, keep fire out of the most dangerous fuels, and
prevent it from becoming established in explosive types of fuels, such
as grass, thickets of tree seedlings, heavy brush, or slash areas.
Confine fire as quickly as possible.
Locate and build firelines. Move
all rollable material so it cannot roll across firelines.
Leave no significant areas of unburned material close to fireline.
To gain control, swiftly locate and build fireline in the easiest
and safest places for line construction that can be held. Burn out
as needed when line is constructed and burning out can be controlled.
Utilize existing barriers to full extent.
If fire spread cannot be contained, notify dispatch and do some safe,
effective work on at least a part of the fire.
Where improvements (houses, other buildings, fences) are involved,
consider all the facts before determining which point to attack first.
No improvement or piece of property is worth firefighter injury or
Now a decision must be made concerning how to attack a fire. The methods
of attack are direct, parallel, and indirect.
Direct attack is made directly on the fire's edge or perimeter (see
Figure 3). The flames may be knocked down by dirt or water and the fire
edge is generally treated by a follow-up fireline. Or, a fireline is
constructed close to the fire's edge and the fuel between the fireline
and the fire is burned out or the fire is allowed to bum to the fireline.
Direct attack generally works best on fires burning in light fuels or
fuels with high moisture content burning under light wind conditions.
Direct attack works well on low intensity fires (flame lengths less than
4 feet) which enable firefighters to work close to the fire.
A major advantage of direct attack is firefighter safety. Firefighters
can usually escape back into the burned area for a safety zone. This
is known as “keeping one foot in the black.”
Parallel attack is made by constructing a fireline parallel to, but
further from, the fire edge than in direct attack (see Figure 4). This
tactic may shorten fireline construction by cutting across unburned fingers.
In most cases the fuel between the fireline and the fire edge is burned
out in conjunction with fireline construction.
Figure 4—Parallel Attack
Indirect attack is accomplished by building a fireline some distance
from the fire edge and backfiring the unburned fuel between the fireline
and the fire edge (see Figure 5). Indirect attack takes advantage of
using natural and human-made barriers as fireline and allows a choice
of timing for backfiring. Indirect attack is generally used on hot fires
with high rates of spread where direct attack is not possible.
Figure 5—Indirect Attack
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