It was a very hot evening and several neighboring departments were dispatched to a structure fire involving a single family dwelling. Due to the heat of the day and the intensity of the fire, mutual aid was requested from our department. We sent an engine and a quint to the scene. I was on the quint and our unit was the first from our department to arrive on the scene. Upon arrival, our crew went to Side A of the structure to meet with the IC. We were advised by the IC that the fire originated in the basement due to an accidental flash fire from acetone material used to treat the floor (approximately 3 gallons). We were advised that the basement was difficult to access for attack and that they believed the staircase was burned away or compromised. My deputy chief, [name omitted] and I suggested using a cellar nozzle in the front foyer of the structure to try and get a knockdown on the fire. The IC agreed with our tactic and we proceeded to get our equipment together for the attack. Upon approaching the front door, there were three firefighters inside the structure in the foyer area. I stepped inside and told them to back out due to our operation. They removed their equipment and our crew prepared for entry. Our crew consisted of five personnel; my deputy chief who has over 30 years experience, myself with 26 years of experience, firefighter [name omitted] with approximately two and one half years of experience, firefighter [name omitted] with approximately six years of experience, and recruit [name omitted] with right at one year of experience. Due to the nature of the operation and the need to act quickly, the deputy chief and I decided that one of us would lead the attack in to get the job done quickly. My deputy chief stated, "You take the lead….I’ve got your back!" I made sure my crew was ready to enter, sounded the floor for stability, and then crossed over the threshold entering the structure. When I was approximately five feet inside the structure, I felt the floor start to give way. I turned toward the front door to try and bail out and at the same time yelled at others to get out, when the floor system collapsed. This was no ordinary collapse. More than two thirds of the first floor collapsed simultaneously. The living room, dining room, kitchen, bathroom and foyer all fell at once. When the collapse happened, I was the only one that fell into the basement, right into the heart of the fire. All I could see around me were flames. I could not see the hole that I had fallen through. I could not see my fellow firefighters above me. All I could see was fire. I began to try and find something to use to climb back up with. Since I did not know what type of collapse had occurred, I just started clawing away at anything as I was trying to climb. During this time, my legs were burning. Fire was burning up between my boots and my bunker pants. The pain was intense. My deputy chief was trying to put a line on me for protection, but the fire was extremely intense. He was lying on the porch with fire shooting out over his head. He stated he could occasionally see the top of my helmet and the reflective stripes on my coat sleeves. By a bit of luck, a roof ladder was laying in the front yard that had just been taken off the roof after completing a ventilation operation. My deputy chief directed the crew to get the ladder into the hole for my escape. By this time, I was burned pretty well on my legs and struggling with exhaustion and the intense heat. I was screaming both from pain and due to fear. I could hear screaming coming from above, but was unable to make out the majority of it. I finally heard the word \\"ladder\\" and then felt something across my back. Once they got the ladder in to the basement, I had to get around to it. I still could not see anything but fire, so this was all by feel. As I started up the ladder, I got two rungs up, reached for the third rung, and lost my grip and fell back into the basement landing on my back. I was so exhausted that I started making my peace with God that this was where I was going to die. My wife and my three boys [names omitted] were at the foreground of my thoughts and I was thinking about never getting to see them again. Somehow, by the grace of God, I found the strength to get up again and start climbing the ladder once more. I got to the fourth rung and felt hands grabbing hold of me helping to pull me out. Upon exiting the fire, I was told by my deputy chief that they had to extinguish me in the front yard. EMS personnel could not touch me as my equipment was too hot, so fire gloves had to be used to remove it. I was hosed down to assist with the cooling process, placed on a stretcher, and transported to the hospital [name and location omitted] where I was admitted and treated for second and third degree burns to both of my legs and minor burns to my left hand and wrist. A lot of things fell into place just right that night. There was no time to call for a RIT team. I never had the chance or the forethought to call MAYDAY. I knew I was burning alive and had to do whatever I could to get out. My level of training gave me enough forethought to not leave the area so that my crew knew where to find me. It also enabled me to react quickly and try options that had been discussed and practiced in training many times. I was panicked, but did not panic to the extent of removing my SCBA, though I was inhaling so hard my mask was touching my nose. My deputy chief kept his composure and facilitated immediate actions by the rest of our crew to enable my rescue. The ladder that had just been removed from the roof was in the right location for use. My crew did not give up on me and I did not give up on them. I owe them my life. Since this incident, I have had to undergo skin graft surgery with the possibility of having to have a second surgery in the near future. I am off work from both of my jobs with an undetermined date of return. This incident has played hard on my mental status as well as physically. Nothing can really prepare you for the emotional roller coaster that you ride after a situation like this. I have spoken with my crew several times since that day and we all experience many of the same emotions, but also many different ones. They will hopefully never know what it was like down in that inferno, but they do know how it feels to watch it happen to one of your own.
LESSONS LEARNED: TRAIN! TRAIN! TRAIN! Train like you have never trained before. We followed everything by the book, no hot dogging, no free-lancing, nothing like that, and things still went wrong. We have gone over the scenario again and again in our heads and agreed that there is nothing we should have or would have done differently. Accidents happen, but you have to train hard and take the job seriously, whether you are a paid or volunteer firefighter, if you want to survive. Most of us go through our career in the fire service without injury, but it can happen at any time and at any fire. BE PREPARED! Take your training seriously. The more you train, the better prepared you will be. Nothing can really completely prepare you for this type of event, but the more you practice what to do, the more likely you are to react in the proper way. RIT teams are an essential part of the fireground operation; however, they are not the only resource. Had I had to wait on the RIT team for rescue, I would not be typing this today. Rely on your own skills and training to try and get out. Don’t give up and just wait. Work together as a crew and keep track of all your personnel. Make sure everyone understands the operation, knows their responsibilities, and has the proper equipment to get the job done. Remember Critical Incident Stress Debriefing, not only immediately following the incident, but for weeks or months after an incident of this magnitude. Every time you talk, more emotions will surface. Don’t try and play the Macho Firefighters and make everyone think that things like this don’t bother you. It will eat you up inside. I have had a very hard time with many issues and
talking with my fellow firefighters and especially my crew has helped not only me, but them as well. Keep your protective equipment in top notch condition and in date. My equipment saved my life that day. More consideration should have been given to the duration and intensity of the fire prior to our entry. Even though it appeared stable, obviously it was not. No warning signs were present. Know the crew you will be entering a fire with. Understand their level of training and confidence. Remember, you may have to get them out of a bad situation, but they may also have to get you out of a bad situation. You must work cohesively as a unit, be able to read each other, and know what is expected of each other. This is hard in many combination and/or volunteer departments, but that again goes back to training.
