Fog Nozzle Training: Are We Creating a Hazardous Impression

BY MICHAEL L. WALKER

When teaching firefighter recruits, it is common for instructors to come up with catchy phrases and acronyms to help students remember the point of the lesson. For example, when we teach fire extinguishers, we use the acronym PASS, which stands for Pull, Aim, Squeeze, and Sweep. We teach COAL WAS WEALTH for size-up and RECEO VS to emphasize tactical priorities. Another learning device sometimes used when teaching how to adjust a fog nozzle to achieve a particular nozzle pattern is “Right for Reach/Left for Life”: If the nozzle is rotated to the right, a straight stream is produced; if the nozzle pattern is adjusted to the left, a fog pattern results. Although the adage is effective in the respect that it emphasizes which way to turn the nozzle, the second part of the statement can be interpreted by firefighters to mean that a wide fog pattern will protect a firefighter caught in a flashover.

Recently at an acquired structure live fire burn, the importance of checking the nozzle pattern prior to entering a structure fire was discussed with some firefighters who recently completed their Firefighter I academy. When the instructor for that day asked the firefighters which way to adjust a fog nozzle to achieve a straight stream, they recited in a cadence much like those saying thePledge of Allegiance, “Right for Reach/Left for Life.” Inquiring further, the instructor asked the firefighters what that meant to them. They told the instructor they had been taught to adjust a fog nozzle toward the right to achieve a straight stream and to adjust it all the way to the left in case they were caught in a flashover. The instructor then asked them to clarify the rationale behind the wide fog angle concept. The students explained how a wide fog pattern provides protection from the heat and flames if the nozzle team were caught in a flashover. It would appear that these students learned their lesson well—maybe too well.