Portland Fire responds to second alarm apartment fire in SE PDX (Photo)

August 03, 2024 10:25

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Portland Fire responds to second alarm apartment fire in SE PDX

At just after 7 AM, BOEC dispatched Portland Fire & Rescue to a possible structural fire just south of SE Foster on SE 72nd. A second alarm response was requested upon arrival with heavy fire present throughout the 12-unit building. The time of day and building type has a good chance of many occupants within the building potentially needing rescue which may extend the ability of a single alarm assignment of 4 engines and 2 trucks. Although the evacuation efforts were minimally needed by responding firefighters, the sheer amount of fire had many 2nd alarm responders actively working alongside the first alarm crews in fire suppression activities. Crews from PF&R and Clackamas County were able to control the fire that affected 9 of the 12 occupancies of the building in around 20 minutes with no reported injuries to responders or occupants. There will be 15 residents displaced. This fire is under investigation with no cause yet determined.

Responding crews communicated a smoke column or "header" as we call them as they were enroute to the fire indicating a working structural fire. This prepares crews and responding chief officers for a working fire as they arrive. The dispatchers communicated that there was a possible trapped victim in an identified apartment which added the need for an ambulance to be attached to the fire call in the event of injuries. The officer of the first arriving response rig, a two-person rescue, took command and communicated a multi occupancy apartment complex with at least an attic fire with heavy dark smoke pushing from the eaves and any vents within the structure. He directed the first arriving engine to begin an offensive fire attack which takes hose lines to the interior of the building to extinguish the fire.

A water supply in place from a fire hydrant located more than 400 feet away was established as truck crews were performing focused searches of each occupancy beginning with the apartment that was the origin of the fire and moving out from there. Fire was present on both levels of the garden style apartment complex with the fire growing in the second level independent apartments. The first arriving chief had taken command and was directing crews to the location of significant fire present. With each apartment having separate entrances on the ground and on the second level, moving hose lines between each apartment required the crews to remove all the hose in use out of each apartment and advance it to the adjacent apartment which is heavy on labor. With the fire having spread to at a minimum 6 of the units, there was a need for many hose lines to be put into service and moved around as needed to address the fire throughout much of the building. The need for more firefighters to move the hose in and out of each individual living space had the command officer redirecting crews and immediately assigning more fire crews to work as the second alarm assignment was arriving on scene. There were 6-7 fire companies moving hose and flowing water with 3 truck companies working either cutting holes in the roof to allow for the smoke and hot gasses trapped by the roof to escape allowing the firefighters within the building an easier time at advancing the hose into the areas of extreme heat because of the fire. Other crews were assigned to plan for a rescue of any firefighter on the interior and with crews in 6 or 7 of these occupancies simultaneously, this is a task not taken lightly with complete evaluation of the structure performed and plans set up prior to an emergency so quick action can be taken if needed.

The second chief to arrive took on the responsibilities of the Safety Chief and was actively reporting information to the command chief so all areas unseen from their location was understood to aid in the tactical planning of actions to be directed. The Safety Chief communicated information about any exposure concerns as part of their communication with the command officer. There was a concern for the fire to spread to a neighboring structure which was communicated to command by the safety chief and a crew was directed to put an exposure line into place, acting as a water curtain to cool the air and any possible flames between the buildings to reduce the chance of the fire jumping to the neighboring structure. A third chief on scene was able to ascend the ladder to the rooftop to aid in the direction of the crews operating the saws and further communicate information to the command officer. This communication and teamwork with the chief officers and others allows the command officer the ability to make precise decisions on what tactical actions to take next in order to completely eliminate any flames.

The command officer was able to precisely direct crews to the location of fire with good information from crews searching and extinguishing flames in each independent apartment. The location of the command rig was such that a great view of the entire side of the structure in addition to the information being transmitted on the radio channel allow the crews on scene to get in front of this significant fire quite quickly with many hands working on cutting, moving hose, searching, and flowing the water that was cooling and extinguishing the flames.

The activities on the roof, while not on the interior of the structure were every bit as dangerous as for those moving within the structure. Active fire was pushing out of each hole cut into the roof and the heat and flames in the attic space were damaging and softening the composition of the roof. Reports were of a "spongy roof" as truck crews were moving from one location to the next. Crews working on the roof use long tools to "sound the roof" by hitting the area in front of them with a hard strike to have knowledge if it will be safe to proceed or if the fire has compromised and damaged such that their body weight may not be held by the roof, and they could fall into the attic space currently filled with active fire. Along with sounding the roof for their protection, members use roof ladders to stand on that safely disperses their body weight, which can be significant with 4 to 8 members wearing their full gear.

Each affected apartment was thoroughly searched with all occupants confirmed to be successfully outside unharmed. One fire crew located a cat and safely took the pet outside the structure to be reunited with the owner. Once the fire was considered under control and extinguished crews began to close out the incident by returning the fire hose to each engine and being the long process of overhauling the structure.

Portland Fire & Rescue would like to thank the dispatchers at BOEC along with our mutual aid partners from Clackamas County Fire who assisted us in this incident. We would also like to acknowledge the assistance provided by the Red Cross in aiding in the relocation of the displaced residents. Additionally, PF&R thanks the crew of the ambulance company for staging and being prepared for any medical intervention that may have been need for a resident or firefighter throughout the fire suppression efforts.

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