Photos by author except where noted

Maintaining orientation to the building when conducting a search is critical for the survival of the firefighter. It is very easy to lose contact with the building and become disoriented. When this occurs, the firefighter becomes lost. This has led to firefighters dying in the line of duty.

Within the building there are clues that can be picked up to help locate where a firefighter may be and maintain orientation. One clue is the floor coverings that are present. Depending on the type of residential structure and the number of stories it has, the floor coverings can tell you where you might be. If the residential building has two stories, common floor coverings found on the first floor will be carpeting for the great room or family room. Hardwood flooring may be found in the dining room, living room, and other open areas of the house. Ceramic tiles may be found in the kitchen, bathroom, and entrance ways of the house. Other common coverings may be laminate wood flooring, which can be found in open areas, great rooms, living rooms, and eating areas.

On the second floor, you may find carpeting in bedrooms and hallways. Ceramic tiles or vinyl flooring will be an indication of a bathroom or an upstairs laundry room. Hardwood floors or laminate wood are also sometimes used in bedrooms. By feeling the floor and knowing what level you are on, you may be able to determine your location.

Another set of clues are the utilities located on the walls of rooms. These utilities may be baseboard heaters, steam/water pipes, and/or radiators. These clues will point to where the outside walls are located within that structure.

The outside walls are often used to locate these devices and can be felt when sweeping the walls during a search. Homes of a certain age will have these devices as opposed to homes built in more modern times. Baseboard heaters are still used today as a way to provide electrical heat. Other devices such as the radiator and steam pipes are not used today and will be found in older homes.

Some of these homes will have had renovations completed with an upgrade to the heating system. They may have installed a forced air system for efficiency but the original devices that were used may have been left for aesthetic purposes. If you get disoriented inside the structure while conducting a search and you can feel on the wall a baseboard heater or a set of radiator pipes, you will know that you are on an outside wall and that there will be a window within a very short distance.  

Equipment needed: Access to an acquired structure, if available, or a fixed facility; search tools; different flooring coverings   

Goal: To become familiar with feeling and determining the floor types while searching in a structure.

Mark van der Feyst has been in the fire service since 1999 and is a firefighter with the Fort Gratiot (MI) Fire Department. He is an international instructor teaching in Canada, the United States, and India, and at FDIC. He is also the lead author of Residential Fire Rescue (Fire Engineering Books & Video). He can be contacted at Mark@FireStarTraining.com.