PURPOSE: To provide guidelines for Fire Department personnel when responding to incidents involving bomb or explosives.

RESPONSE CONSIDERATIONS

Mitigation of bomb threats are the responsibility of the Police Department.  Fire Department personnel should await the arrival of Police personnel on the scene.  Establish FIRE COMMAND in conjunction with the On-Scene Police Commander.  Command should be considered an Unified Command.

The Fire Commander should contact the Police Commander and provide input into the Fire Department's operation.

Fire Department personnel should operate in a support role, unless an explosion has occurred.  If an explosion has occurred, the Fire Command Officer should assume an aggressive role in determining a course of action to reduce further harm.

Do not use radios within the hazard zone, as radio may activate some type of denotation devices.

A decision to evacuate or to return all personnel to the structure should be based on information regarding the severity of the threat, facility management input, searches, or other pertinent data.  Facility management has the right to return occupants to the building at any time.

Facility personnel familiar with the structure and the allowable contents of the facility, should assist in determining the severity of the threat.  Facility personnel may be the only persons capable of determining what may be out of place.

If an explosion has occurred, all personnel must understand that the potential for secondary explosions or other bombs is a REAL threat.

Each company should stage a safe distance from the hazard zone and maintain an adequate distance between fire department vehicles to allow a safe margin in case one vehicle is compromised.

Upon deciding to conduct a search, consider the following guidelines:

Upon discovery of a Suspicious Object

•      Do not, under any circumstances move, jar or touch a suspicious object.
•      Report the location with an accurate description of the object.  Information should then be relayed to the command center.
•      If necessary, place sand bags around the object without covering it.  Never use metal shields.
•      Identify the danger area and block it off with a clear zone of at least 300 feet, including floors below and above.
•      Utilize the DOT Emergency Response Guidebook, Guide 112 for assistance.
•      Open all doors and windows to minimize primary damage from a blast, as well as fragmentation damage.
•      Evacuate the building
•      Do not permit re-entry into the building until the device has been removed or disarmed and the building has been safe
•         declared safe.
•      Remember to use TIME, DISTANCE, and SHIELDING as protective measures. (IF YOU CAN SEE THE BOMB, THE
•          BOMB CAN SEE YOU.)
•      IF EMS is not on the scene, consideration should be given to have EMS in a staging area as a precautionary measure.

EXTERNAL PRIORITY SEARCH

•      Bushes, shrubs, and planters
•      Freshly disturbed eart in plant beds
•      Decorative facings and blockwork
•      Drain spouts
•      Trash receptacles
•      Electrical panels
•      Manhole covers and storm drains
•      Parked vehicles close to the building
•      Roofs and ledges

INTERNAL PRIORITY SEARCH

•      In the entry or lobby check; planters, display items, seats, ashtrays, and news rack
•      Stairways
•      Elevators
•      In rest rooms check; trash containers, toilet bowls, and supply closets
•      Dumpsters and incinerators
•      Receiving areas
•      Supply Closets
•      In the basement check; air ducts, electrical panels, crawl spaces, scuttle holes, sumps, drains, and equipment areas
•      Rarely used hallways

     On roofs check; cooling towers, elevators, equipment rooms, roof vents and ducts