Having a good sizeup is important in order to give both the Incident Commander (IC) and fire management a good idea of what problems exist and what resources may be needed for effective firefighting.
Sizeup.com
Size-up is defined in most fire service texts as the on going evaluation of problems confronted within a fire situation. SizeUp is a digital tape measure that allows users to measure length, width and height of a surface by moving their phone in the air from point to point! Having a good sizeup is important in order to give both the Incident Commander (IC) and fire management a good idea of what problems exist and what resources may be needed for effective firefighting. Use the following reporting factors for sizeup and reference local fire sizeup cards. Discuss others that may be used. Fire name and location.
Use the following reporting factors for sizeup and reference local fire sizeup cards. Discuss others that may be used.
- Fire name and location.
- Terrain (slope, aspect, elevation) and position of fire on the slope.
- Size of fire.
- Fuel type, anticipated control problems, and spread potential.
- Values threatened.
- Weather conditions (wind speed and direction).
- Fire behavior.
- Resources on the fire and those needed.
- Estimated containment and control times.
- Cause (known, suspected, under investigation).
Sizeup Tool
After your initial sizeup of the fire and/or transition from an initial attack IC, answer the following questions. Repeat this analysis whenever there is a change, or predicted change, in conditions on the fire.
- Have you sized up the fire and relayed the information to dispatch?
- Is the observed fire weather consistent with the forecast?
- Can you control the fire with the resources available (on the incident or soon to be on the incident) and under the expected conditions?
- Have you developed a plan to attack the fire (direct or indirect, anchor points, escape routes, head or flank attack, priority areas); and have you communicated this information to all personnel assigned to the incident, including new arrivals?
- Are lookouts in place or can you see all of the fire area?
- Can you communicate with everyone on the fire and with dispatch?
- Are escape routes and safety zones established? If you are using the black, is it completely burned and without a reburn potential?
- Are safety and the standard fire orders being followed and/or mitigated?
- Do you have a complete list of what resources have been ordered for the fire?
- Will you control the fire before the next operational period; and if you won’t, or the size of the organization exceeds the IC’s capability to manage, have you informed the agency Fire Management Officer?
Additional Resources
Incident Management Situation Report (IMSR)
Incident Response Pocket Guide (IRPG), PMS 461
NWCG Standards for Helicopter Operations, PMS 510
RT-130, Wildland Fire Safety Training Annual Refresher (WFSTAR)
Interagency Standards for Fire and Fire Aviation Operations (Red Book)
Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center
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