Coordinated Ventilation Paul Grimwood, a crew commander with the London Fire Brigade (LFB), was one of the early thought leaders who endeavored to define the concept of deliberately coordinating ventilation, eventually coining the term tactical ventilation in 1987. The impetus for his journey occurred in the mid-1970s during a study detachment to the United States for the purpose of observing fireground operations. While riding along with the FDNY''s 18th Battalion in the Bronx during the War Years, Grimwood was able to witness firsthand the value of the American style of firefighting, particularly the strategy and tactics of ventilation. Among the most impactful strategies that he observed was the ladder company inside teams making entry ahead of the handline to locate and confine the seat of the fire, utilizing a 2.5-gallon pressurized water extinguisher and door control techniques, while the roof firefighters opened up topside and the outside vent firefighters took windows and performed searches of targeted areas by entering via windows (which they referred to as "vent-enter-search" [VES]). After returning home and reflecting on his experiences, he recognized that there would be a tremendous benefit to integrating that proactive approach to remedy the more reactive fire isolation strategy the LFB was employing. The overly conservative anti-ventilation strategy, utilizing zoning tactics to restrict the flow of air to the fire, only focused on limiting fire growth and spread. Ventilation, therefore, was strictly withheld until the fire had been knocked down unless deemed necessary and authorized by the incident commander.

While its application as a containment measure was effective for the unique building stock found in London, which afforded greater fire resistance and structural stability, it did, however, have adverse effects on tenability, proving detrimental to firefighters and trapped occupants. During his time with the LFB, Grimwood recalled several occasions where this lack of timely ventilation stalled or slowed the advance of interior crews and prevented victims from receiving any relief from the buildup of the fire''s byproducts in certain locations (e.g., the top of stairwells in multiple-dwelling occupancies), resulting in operational failures and even fatalities. Grimwood acknowledged that while containing the fire is certainly a priority, it is of greater importance to support the firefighting operations and, even more so, to enhance victim survivability. After his second study detachment with the FDNY in the 1990s, which additionally took him to other metropolitan cities across the United States, he became keenly aware that the American style of ventilation had the potential for negative implications as well, if it was not tempered by clear purpose and disciplined procedures. This prompted him to develop the hybrid concept of tactical ventilation, which is the integration of isolation, confinement, and ventilation. Coordinating these actions can improve conditions, allowing firefighters to outmaneuver and gain advantage over the fire as well as to give trapped occupants the best chance of survival.

While the specific manner in which ventilation is accomplished is unique for each incident, the fundamental concepts are universal. Achieving coordination on the fireground begins at the organizational level. Fire departments must be well structured and trained to attain this level of performance consistently. Doctrine must be put in place to predetermine and address the roles, responsibilities, and priorities of the units and the personnel responding. Standard operating procedures should be established to specify unit, riding, and tool assignments based on the apparatus type and their order of arrival. This operational framework must be consistently reinforced through training and implemented at all incidents. With everyone working from the same playbook, operations will be streamlined, increasing effectiveness and efficiency, continuity, and accountability. To ensure that ventilation achieves its intended effect--maximizing tenability to facilitate firefighting efforts and enhance victim survivability--it is imperative that any openings created are in the correct location, of the appropriate size, and especially done at the right time.

When initiated in a preemptive sequence (i.e., suppression being imminent), ventilation has a finite window of effectiveness that is dictated by the specific fireground conditions. As our working environment continues to evolve, fires are reacting to ventilation much more rapidly, reducing that grace period and our margin for error. Because of this condensed timeline, the fire has an even greater advantage, increasing the significance of timing to properly coordinate ventilation. Once the benefits of ventilation expire and the tactic reaches its point of diminishing returns--which can occur rapidly--conditions will deteriorate and can result in a (ventilation-induced) flashover when left unchecked. In essence, if air is added to the fire and water is not applied promptly and effectively, the fire will grow and spread, increasing the hazard to both firefighters and trapped victims. Therefore, ventilation should not be performed until at least the nozzle team is in position with a charged handline and ready to initiate suppression.

The only potential exceptions are when the affected area is or can be promptly isolated from the fire or when the opening is necessary to affect the rescue of a victim. The success of ventilation thus depends on coordinating its execution with the progress of the interior crews. Coordination can be achieved through direct communication or by monitoring the radio traffic for situation reports, providing the conditions, actions, and needs experienced by the reporting unit. Be sure to key in for operational benchmarks (e.g., water on the fire), as well as for red flags (e.g., high heat, zero visibility, unable to locate the fire), and to continuously assess the conditions for visual, auditory, and tactile cues indicating the progress of the fire attack and the search efforts.