Frank M. Panek said:
To control and suppress any fire, the tactics used must break one of the legs of the fire triangle. In Long Island, New York, most brush fires are suppressed by applying wetlines to reduce the heat leg of the triangle. This involves using brush trucks and stump jumpers for rapid access to the fire edge. Stump jumpers are rugged, direct-attack engines usually custom built on a 212-ton military chassis. The trucks are modified for woodland firefighting by adding heavy skid plates, roll bars, and a wire-enclosed bed to protect firefighters and their equipment. Most trucks carry 500 gallons or more of water and can operate several handlines. Similar equipment used by rural departments in the New Jersey and Massachusetts pine barrens are referred to as brush breakers.
Secondary tactics may include using fire control lines, fire roads, and other manmade or natural barriers to reduce the fuel leg of the triangle. Heavy equipment such as dozers and loaders usually are called in from state or town highway departments to work under the direction of the incident commander or chief fire officer. Tractors with fire plows may be available from federal or state forestry offices. Heavy equipment can effectively contain most fires by creating fire breaks and control lines in advance of fast-moving fire fronts.
Most Long Island departments responsible for protecting large tracts of pine barrens forests or with significant urban-wildland interfaces have one or more stump jumpers. It is not uncommon for several departments to dispatch stump jumpers to provide mutual aid for large fires. Regardless of the size of the fire or number of trucks operating, safe operation of the apparatus is essential to protect firefighters and equipment.
Safe operation begins with the driver and the truck officer understanding the abilities and limitations of the apparatus and knowing their destinations and how they will get to them safely. The driver is responsible for making sure the truck is operating properly and the crew is safely aboard before leaving the fire station. Firefighters should be in the truck`s cab or a safe crew compartment for over-the-road response to the fire scene. The officer should know the fire area, the location of the fire roads, and the fire gates and their access points and should remain in contact with the incident commander or chief officer.
Among the initial decisions to be made at the fire scene are which methods of attack to use, how many units are needed, and how the units will be deployed to work the fire. On Long Island, most stump jumpers work off-road to apply wetlines to the fire flank or head. This means putting the truck and its crew in the woods in areas with limited visibility, smoke, and intense flames.
Operating stump jumpers in dense brush with fire and heavy smoke is dangerous. Trucks should operate from the black or burned area and, if possible, approach the fire from the cool, upwind side. The black area always serves as a safe refuge if problems develop. Working downwind of a rapidly moving surface fire or a crown fire is dangerous and should be avoided when possible. Serious problems can arise when stump jumpers work uphill of a fire front. Trucks never should be put in this position. Fires tend to intensify and move rapidly up slopes and may entrap the truck and its crew. In general, the rate of fire spread doubles for each 10-percent increase in slope. Slopes of 10 to 30 percent are common in the rolling hills of Long Island`s pine barrens.
Stump jumpers should work in pairs. By working together, the trucks can suppress flank and head fires more efficiently while providing mutual protection. Also, truck-to-truck communications are enhanced and visual contact can be maintained.
Crews working on stump jumpers must be trained to operate them and to learn their limitations and the dangers of working in a heavy vehicle moving through dense brush. Under no circumstances, for example, should crew members extend their hoseline nozzles or arms, legs, or head outside the brush truck`s protective structure while it is moving. Tree trunks or branches scraping along the side of a stump jumper can crush limbs and break bones.
Drivers must take special precautions to avoid injuries and accidents associated with woodland driving. The most common injury to drivers involves broken and dislocated thumb fingers. Steering wheels on stump jumpers are difficult to hold onto and control during off-road use. When a truck hits a stump, log, rock, or depression, the steering wheel rapidly and forcefully spins as the tires are forced in a new and unexpected direction. Some drivers wear a glove or tape down their thumbs in a way that prevents the thumb from grasping the wheel. In that way, the wheel`s rapid movement does not jam the spokes into the thumb. Drivers should also wear a seat belt, which not only protects them while on the road but also gives more control while in rough terrain. Drivers and truck officers should use seat belts to minimize injuries should roll-over occur.
Firefighters must wear protective clothing and headgear. Several Long Island departments have discontinued using structural firefighting headgear in favor of headgear that gives greater protection to the head and face. Appropriate headgear should include a visor that protects the entire face from potentially impaling twigs and branches. Lightweight fire retardant fire clothing and a pair of good safety-tipped boots should be worn. Heavy structural firefighting turnout gear may cause overheating, which could lead to heat exhaustion or heat stroke. Wearing lighter fire clothing provides greater mobility for wildland firefighters, reduces fatigue, and extends the fire crew`s safe and effective working time. This is particularly true on the hot, dry afternoons that are typical of the worst fire season in the pine barrens.
