When the puzzle pieces just aren’t fitting together. The Brian Schaeffer Story. (SAM 237)

  The first arriving crews attempted to knock down the fire from the exterior but were not success. Subsequently, companies went to the basement, expecting to find fire in the basement. The conditions were warm with very little smoke. The basement design was complex. The BC had the lines charged and started the search for victims and the fire. The crews were cutting holes in the walls and ceilings looking for the source of the fire. Chief Schaeffer arrived and noticed the conditions were getting worse. An order was giving to cut access holes from the exterior. While the BC in the basement was reporting relatively clear conditions there was heavy smoke billowing out of a basement opening viewable from the exterior. Chief Schaeffer became Division 1 (on the first floor). He reported light smoke on the first floor. Companies were doing primary and secondary search on the first floor and look for extension from the basement. Soon, the conditions started changing quickly. Division 1 reported this to the basement Division. The first-floor crews were on their knees. Basement reported no smoke and cold conditions. Exterior reported a dramatic change in conditions. The crew on the first floor was in complete darkness. The first-floor crew exited. However, the crews were still in basement. The conditions continued to change rapidly. An evacuation tone was ordered and Division 1 crews went to the basement, located and assisted the basement crews to safety. Some takeaways from the interview include: You’ll learn how rapidly changing fire conditions can unexpectedly over run the crews. You’ll learn what can happen when the fire does not behave as expected (i.e., when the puzzle pieces don’t fit). You’ll learn how you can become normalized to your environment and may not see the severity of the conditions. You’ll learn how volumes of radio traffic on a single tactical channel can impact scene safety if at-risk crews cannot communicate via radio. You’ll learn how time distortion impacted the perception of speed at this incident.     Show Notes   Contact Us www.SAMatters.com www.RichGasaway.com 612-548-4424 (office) 651-331-8518 (cell)     Get connected with SAMatters   Facebook: Follow SAMatters   LinkedIn: Follow Rich Gasaway   Twitter: Follow Rich Gasaway   Instagram: Follow SA_Matters Youtube: Subscribe to SAMattersTV   Itunes: Subscribe to SAMatters Radio   Stitcher Radio: Subscribe to SAMatters Radio   Google Play: Subscribe to SAMatters Radio   iHeart Radio: Subscribe to SAMatters Radio   Our Sponsors Midwest Fire MidwestFire.com   Chief Miller Instagram: @Chief_Miller   Intro music Safety Dance (1982) Men Without Hats GMC - Virgin Records Licensed by BMI Music   Firefighter Near Miss Reporting System http://www.firefighternearmiss.com/   SPONSOR THIS SHOW   The SAMatters Show is the longest running, fastest growing, safety focused weekly program on the Internet. If you know a company that might be interested in advertising their product or service to our listeners and viewers, ask them to contact us by clicking the “Contact us” tab at the top of the SAMatters.com website.