BY MICHAEL A. TERPAK
Size-up is the process of gathering information that will assist firefighters and fire officers in making efficient, effective, and safe decisions on the fireground. It is the foundation for the officer's decision making. Because of the obvious urgency of responding and going to work at an emergency incident, decisions on the fireground must be made quickly, with a continued emphasis on their efficiency, effectiveness, and safety. To meet this demand, fire officers over the years have developed and used different means of gathering the information about a potential or actual incident. They would often seek this information from multiple sources.
As experience often demonstrates, it becomes evident early on in this business that waiting to gather information until the fire department arrives at an incident often proves to be reactive, unprofessional, and unproductive. Many fire officers gather specific information at different time intervals. The question is, When and where do we find the information?
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