Fire Rescue Magazine

Fire Rescue Magazine, December 2004
SOGs for Thermal Imagers
By Jonathan Bastian

Fire departments would never consider placing new SCBAs or new extrication equipment into service without an extensive training program and standard operating guidelines (SOGs). And yet every day, fire departments place thermal imagers (TIs) into service with little more than an explanation of how to change the batteries.

It is critical that you develop a comprehensive, yet flexible, SOG for your fire department that includes where you will mount and store your TI and how standard maintenance procedures will be handled. Your TI SOG must specify who is expected to carry the tool, and it should identify key aspects of how a search should be performed with the tool.

Where will the TI be stored?

This aspect of planning actually deserves some significant thought. First, you must decide which apparatus will carry the TI (or TIs). One approach, which is common when fire departments do not have enough TIs, is to assign the tool to vehicles that make all fires. This usually means chiefs’ cars and squads (heavy rescues).

While this placement may guarantee the TI arrives on every incident, it does not guarantee the TI is used on every incident. Experience regularly shows that TI usage is tied to the time of arrival, not the frequency of arrival. In other words, if the TI doesn’t arrive at the beginning of an incident, it probably will not be used. Seriously consider placing the TI on the busiest first-due fire companies. If the TI arrives on the first or second company 50% of the time, it will probably be used in 50% of the incidents. If the TI arrives fifth on 100% of the incidents, it will probably be used at 10-20% of the incidents. Chances are, more frequent use benefits your citizens as well as your firefighters.

Once you clarify which rigs will carry the TIs, you must choose where they will be located on those rigs. Thermal imagers stored in their hard cases, in a compartment, covered by the cellar nozzle and rope-hose tool, will stay there – forever. Or at least until the rookie asks his officer what the black case is for. Thermal imagers get the most use when they are in the cab with the company members.

To ensure the greatest potential for use, your SOG needs to specify where the TI will be mounted in the cab. Most manufacturers offer a truck mount system. The newer systems charge the battery while it is in the TI. Buy this system for your TI. With the TI easy to see and easy to reach, you improve the chances that the tool will be carried off the rig and put to use. The built-in battery charger is a bonus that ensures the battery will be fully charged when the TI is taken off the rig and into a structure.

Who will be responsible for carrying it at incidents?

Once your SOG has specified where the TI will be located, it should specify who is responsible for it. No, this is not automatically the responsibility of the company officer. While he/she is responsible for the company, he/she may not be responsible for the individual tool at an incident. Do you require that the officer carry the halligan bar and the water can? Of course not. The thermal imager, as a tool, can be assigned to the firefighter who makes sense in your system. To make life easier, make sure your TI placement is related directly to which firefighter is responsible for carrying the thermal imager.

Seat assignments improve efficiency with any tool. They are common in career departments, but volunteer departments can adopt this approach as well (yes, it can work…the author’s done it). By assigning specific roles and specific tools to each seat on the apparatus, you ensure that all of the critical tools you need are brought into the incident immediately. The process eliminates confusion about who should bring what, and more importantly, it verifies that you will have all of your primary tools with you when you enter an incident. Every officer knows that sending a firefighter back to the rig to get a basic piece of equipment is embarrassing.

You will have to practice within your operational guidelines to determine which riding position should have TI responsibility. Solid planning will ensure that the appropriate person brings the TI every single time.

What are the maintenance procedures?

Have you ever been to a structure fire where you need to vent the roof, and you find that the vent saw has no chain oil, or no gasoline? You will experience the same frustration and embarrassment if you try to use a thermal imager that has not been properly maintained.

The primary consideration for TI maintenance revolves around the battery. Frankly, the battery is the weak link in the entire system. If you do not properly maintain and care for your batteries and the rest of the TI system, your thermal imager will not function at emergency incidents when you need it most.

Your SOGs must specifically address battery changes, battery charging and battery life. Work with your TI manufacturer to develop a change-out policy that ensures consistent operation. Several key points must be addressed in your SOG. First, plan the exercise cycle. Even though the batteries are sold as “no memory” batteries, they still require exercise to optimize performance. If your manufacturer does not offer a suggestion, plan on fully charging, fully draining, and fully recharging TI batteries monthly. Second, have a designated contact for battery and charger issues, so that one person is aware of what is, and is not, working properly. Third, develop a regular replacement plan for your rechargeable batteries. Unless your manufacturer tells you differently, replace the batteries every 18-36 months, depending on usage.

To track when a battery must be replaced, write the purchase date or expiration date on the battery. This eliminates reliance on people’s memories, and instead enables you to rely on facts. Treat the battery as you would treat medications in your drug box: replace them the month before they expire. You must define all of these issues in your SOG to ensure that the system is adopted and enforced universally. If you rely on individual officers and leave the decisions to them, you will have as many systems as you have officers. Get everyone on the same page to ensure that the batteries work for each shift, on every single call.

How are searches performed?

Good, reliable searches with a TI require a pattern, a process and an exception. Your SOG should clarify the scanning pattern that firefighters will use to get a full view of the entire room or area. To do a complete search, you must scan from shoulder-to-shoulder, high-middle-low. Because a TI has no peripheral vision, it is critical that you make full, deliberate movements to search an area fully.

You should also codify how the TI will assist a search team, or help manage the process of the search. The two most common systems are to send the TI into the room with the firefighter, or to leave the TI in the hall with the partner. If the firefighter with the TI enters the room to do a search, his partner stays at the door as a reference point. Otherwise, the TI is used from the hallway to monitor conditions and the progress of the searching firefighter, who enters the room blind. There are distinct advantages and disadvantages to each system, so practice frequently to ensure you choose the one that works best in your FD.

A TI will help you clear areas faster and more accurately during a search. There is one exception, however, where reliance on a TI is not acceptable. Because beds can wreak havoc on thermal imaging interpretation, your SOG should specify that beds are always checked by hand, regardless of what the TI indicates. Blankets obscure heat signatures (especially of children), latent heat signatures are possible (especially if someone just escaped), and dust ruffles can hide what is underneath a bed (such as a child). If your TI shows what appears to be a bed, the SOG should require that a firefighter search the top and underneath the bed by hand, then pull the bed from the wall to ensure no one is wedged between the wall and the mattress.

Conclusions

Well-planned and well-rehearsed SOGs make every emergency operation smoother and safer. Do not forget to include your TIs in your SOGs. While the four points addressed in this article are key considerations, you may have other issues to address based on your department. Also, you do not have to invent your SOGs from scratch. By using an online search engine, you can find dozens of sample SOGs on the Internet. Using the key words “thermal imager standard operating” and “thermal imaging standard operating” gives you the most options.

Use your TI often, wisely and safely.

Image 1 (t3sizeupheatandsun.jpg) When a thermal imager arrives early in an incident, it can assist with tasks such as size up. Here, an early arriving thermal imager shows that heavy heat is accumulating to the right of the front door, verifying the automatic alarm which caused the fire department response.