Fire Ground Operations

On May 13, 2025, IAFF Local 2020 fire fighters responded to a report of smoke near an abandoned warehouse and found heavy smoke but no visible fire. While cutting into the floor to check for fire below, conditions changed instantly and a burst of heat and smoke blew out a door, throwing two of our members backward. Both escaped without serious injury.

On Aug. 12, 2006, Green Bay Metro Fire Department Lieutenant and Local 141 member Arnie Wolf died in the line of duty when a lightweight wood truss floor collapsed beneath him during a basement fire, dropping him and his partner into the fire below.

On Nov. 6, 2021, an IAFF Local 856 fire fighter suffered 35% burns after a porch flashover trapped him during rescue efforts at a six-unit apartment fire. Members and colleagues share what happened on the fire ground, his recovery, and how the incident led the department to eliminate synthetic clothing worn under turnout gear and to expand fire ground survival training.

On Jan. 6, 2025, Honolulu Fire Department Fire Fighter and Local 1463 member Jeffrey Fiala died in the line of duty after rapid fire development trapped him and two fellow fire fighters on the second floor of a residential structure that had been illegally converted into a multi-unit rental.

On May 30, 2024, IAFF Local 1062 member Spencer Tejedas sustained third-degree burns across 45% of his body and multiple finger amputations after a flashover trapped him during a residential structure fire with a child reported inside. Tejedas shares his account of the incident alongside colleagues and department leadership, along with the changes to fire ground strategy terminology and burn treatment protocols that followed a NIOSH investigation.