Granite State News
Staff Writer
WOLFEBORO — Huggins Hospital’s original three-story main building, slated for demolition, became a staging ground for search and rescue drills for firemen from Tuftonboro and Wolfeboro on Saturday, July 24. “This is a gold mine,” commented instructor Nick Proulx of the Gilford Fire Department (GFD), as he led the first rope drill team back out of the building. Wolfeboro’s Deputy Chief Tom Zotti said that asbestos abatement had been completed earlier, so the time was right for the firefighters to use the deserted building and its partially demolished interior for practice – not only for large area search rope drills but also for forcing down doors. “We want the necessary actions to become instinctive,” said Zotti, “when in situations where the conditions are deteriorating.” Rev. David Lindsay, the fire chaplain, dressed in his fire safety gear, stood on the lawn outside the entry door surrounded by firemen and women suited up for action, with a clipboard, the “accountability board” in his hand with lists of names. In an actual fire, someone has to fill that role to keep track of team members, know what resources are available, and communicate with the management team throughout an event. Fire trucks stood at the ready in the hospital parking lot, along with two Stewart’s Ambulance Service vehicles. “The most frequently asked question we get, “said Lt. Frank Bellefleur, “is why we bring so many trucks to the scene.” In explanation, the rule of thumb is to have 13 people on the scene for a one-room fire. That may seem excessive, but it breaks down to needing two people to search the area, two to three to manage a hose line, a pump operator, a backup hose line with an operator, and a ventilation crew. The ventilation crew is responsible for opening windows and creating openings in the roof to let out the products of combustion so the firemen can see. Also, “there are separate engines and a separate water source,” says Zotti. Engines #2 and #3 carry water. “Redundancy is key to the operation.” “Think of the fire truck as a tool box,” says Zotti. They have to be prepared for many different scenarios, and the ladder truck, for example, carries numerous ladders of several different lengths. When a fire is blazing, there’s no time for failing equipment or not having what is necessary. “Plan for the worst and hope for the best,” adds Zotti. An unchecked fire doubles in size every three minutes, so “call before trying to put it out,” says Bellefleur. If you are successful that’s all to the good, but if you’re not, the fire department crew will be there to get it under control. When instructor Chuck Campbell from Gilford FD finishes his directions on rope techniques for searching a building, team members set off to investigate the halls and rooms of the onetime emergency wing and the next story up. Firemen are guided by rings on a long rope. If you feel the series of three knots on one side of the ring, then you know you are heading back out, a helpful guide if in a room darkened with smoke. Partners attach their ropes to a Halligan tool, which has a fork, adz and point to perform multiple tasks. One is to force open locked doors. It also can be jabbed into the floor to serve as a short base to stand up on to get out via a basement window when trapped, or serve as a post for a guide rope. In this case, it is the latter, and partners head to the left and right to search for victims. Each returns to the center and proceeds down the hall. Their names in reflective tape shine in the beam of a flashlight.
Campbell describes the forced entry techniques that are unique to the type of door one has to break down as ways to “defeat the lock on the door itself, not the door,” and he gives a wry reminder to check to make sure the door is actually locked before expending energy to knock it in. “Try before you pry,” is the slogan. And smash through the lower half of the door, not the top where the smoke and flames would descend onto you. Remember, too, that exterior doors in commercial buildings swing out and residential doors usually swing in. Wedges of wood called chocks inserted in the door frames keep them open. Sets of soft foam ear plugs make the rounds outside before the teams go back into the building to apply their forced entry strike techniques. One, two, three, strike! One, two, three, strike! The sounds of metal banging metal and partners calling out the strike command resound throughout the corridor. It doesn’t take long for their faces to drip with sweat in the close quarters even without an actual fire. It’s a warm summer morning, but the assortment of full time fire personnel and call members are giving up a Saturday morning. There have to be three off duty personnel available for every one person who’s on duty, so it takes a good number of people willing and able to drop whatever they’re doing on a moment’s notice to attend to a fire. And when they get there, they need to know what to do. The impending demolition of the old hospital wing affords the firemen an unusual opportunity to practice skills. At the same time, there is a sense of history in the structure that has served the community for decades.
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