May 2017
FireNuggets, Inc
it sideways to locate the ceiling joist or bottom
chord. This will help increase your chances of
dropping large pieces of ceiling with only a few
strokes of the hook. Much the same way the roof
decking is nailed to the roof system, the sheet rock
is screwed to these ceiling members. Naturally, this
is where you should focus your energy and force on
the hook.
Be sure to lower your center of gravity and take a
wider stance to prevent yourself from bending
directly over the hole as you attempt to push the
“lid” in. If you do not practice this stance prior to
the fire you may learn the hard way that forward
momentum can work for us and against us. Many a
time, we have witnessed firefighters in training, lose
their hook and almost fall in themselves by not
preparing for that momentum shift as a large piece
of gypsum board fails on an actual building.
Furthermore, be ready for the blast of heat, smoke or
steam that will certainly exhaust from your opening
so long as you put it in the right spot and early
enough in the fire fight. Protect your face by looking
away as you attempt to push in the ceiling.
Lastly, keep in mind that the opening in the roof is
only as good as the opening in the ceiling below it.
Aggressively work the ceiling as best you can. If you
get venting fire out of the ventilation hole once you
start pushing in the ceiling this does not necessarily
mean you are done. You're wearing PPE for a
reason. We should be trying to open as much ceiling
as possible until we can no longer maintain this
position. When manpower is sufficient, this is a good
reason to stretch a hose line topside. It should not be
directed into the hole, but rather it should be placed
on a 30 degree fog horizontally along the roofs
surface to keep the smoke and heat off of the roof
team as they work these ventilation openings. It also
helps keep the saws running when these roofs get
extremely smoky.
in the fires location and have each member of your
company sketch out how they'd spot / ladder, travel,
and cut the roof in the respective pic. Lastly, once
your company has these spotting and roof operations
committed to memory, get out in your first due and
practice these operations on the buildings you’ll be
responding to. If you have any questions don't
hesitate to hit us up on either FaceBook or our
website at thewestcoastoffense.com
Thank you and take care of each other!
Colin Kelley
The W.C.O.
We here at the West Coast Offense hope this article
was helpful. Now is the time to go back and watch
the video once more to help solidify these
operational principles. Use Google Maps to quiz your
company. Print up various buildings in your city, draw
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