Urban Conflagration Tactics After Triage


Hand tools for fire guards, brush removal and direct attack in low intensity (incipient) fire.
Situational awareness for command, crew placement and water drops are helicopter jobs.


Structure Protection Strategy WUI firefighting strategies can be defensive (taking action before, during, or after the fire front passes), offensive (attacking the fire directly before it reaches structures), or a combination of both. Ultimately, the most effective form of structure protection is to suppress the wildfire first using conventional wildland tactics like line construction, enveloping, and firing out.

Specific Tactical Actions Based on the structural triage categories we discussed earlier, firefighters deploy specific tactics depending on whether a home is defensible:

For Non-Defensible Structures (No Safety Zone):

  • Check and Go (Rescue Drive-by): A rapid evaluation to check for occupants and assist in evacuations when extreme fire behavior or lack of time makes it too dangerous to stay.
  • Prep and Leave: Firefighters have enough time to rapidly prepare the structure (such as applying protective gels or foams) but must leave before the fire arrives to avoid losing their escape routes.
  • Fire Front Following: Firefighters wait in a safe area while the fire passes, then move in behind it to extinguish hot spots, secure partially involved structures, and search for victims.

For Defensible Structures (Safety Zones Exist):

  • Prep and Hold: Firefighters safely prepare the structure and stay to engage the fire as the front arrives, utilizing identified safety zones and escape routes.
  • Bump and Run: A highly mobile tactic where firefighters move with or just ahead of the fire front to put out spot fires and defend multiple structures. Crews "leap-frog" from house to house and move on if a structure becomes too involved.
  • Anchor and Hold: Used when the main threat is fire spreading from house to house. Firefighters use hand lines and master streams to protect exposures, but this should only be used when water supplies are abundant.

Post-Fire Front:

  • Mop Up and Patrol: A critical step after the main fire passes to monitor for flare-ups, extinguish residual burning (like lawn furniture or wood piles), and mitigate hazards like downed power lines. Substantial property loss often happens when resources move on without properly mopping up embers and hidden fires.

Urban Conflagration Tactics. 

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