Everyone who has ever watched a Hollywood production of firefighting will inevitably see a scene where the heroic firefighter jumps off of the truck bumper while it speeds to the hydrant, running past the distraught neighbors and into the burning house, his coat swaying in the summer breeze. He grabs an axe and races to the front porch and leans back on his haunches lashing out with his leg to smash the door open as it shatters off its hinges!
As we all stood around before class you could see the collective thought in our minds, "That's cool! When do we get to do that?!"
Probably never.
We sat in class reviewing another, ahem, "interesting" presentation on Forcible Entry. It was our job that night to learn the tools of the trade:
 | The K-Tool is a great way to pop a door open. Check out this video to see how it works. | ||||||
| The K-Tool |
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| The Halligan |
The Halligan has many uses. Check out this informational video.
And last but not least, everyone's favorite firefighter tool - the AXE! You will never look cooler than when you are running with an axe. Amiright, Rescue 1?!
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| Kurt Russell - Backdraft © Imagine Films Entertainment |
If you haven't seen "Backdraft" please watch it. Then realize that it is the most fictitious firefighting movie available. If our Chief saw us show up to a fire, let alone try to run into a structure fire like Kurt Russell does, then the Chief would blow a gasket! Kurt Russel's helmet isn't strapped on, he's not wearing an SCBA or a facepiece, his jacket is open, and he is freelancing! Those are the things that get firefighters hurt or killed. Sorry to be a buzzkill.
Anyway, back to Forcible Entry. During our hands on training that night we were commanded to roll out a huge and expensive manufactured steel door on wheels from behind the truck. The Chief showed us all the proper technique for forcing entry through that big steel door.
His steely eyes glanced around at our motley crew and said, "Who's up?"
Another recruit I'll call "Shrub" was standing next to me. We glanced at each other and Chief said, "Let's go guys!"
I was kind of nervous because I wanted to look good and I didn't want to wear myself out hammering on this door. Chief handed Shrub the Halligan and gave me the axe.
"You ready?" Shrub asks me.
"Uh, sure..." I said with the utmost confidence.
Shrub turned and planted his feet a little more than shoulder width apart in front of the door. His broad shoulders spun back toward me then he twisted his core and jammed the Halligan straight into the space between the door and the frame just above the lock. He stood to the side of the Halligan just like he was supposed to and looked back at me, nodding his head, and looking back to the door.
"Go!" he shouted.
From my kneeling position I twisted my trunk back and then swung the axe forward as hard as I could while keeping my eyes focused on the wedge or adz end of the Halligan. The axe slammed into the Halligan and the entire door banged with a huge echo off of the bay walls.
With each command from Shrub I hammered the Halligan as hard as I could to help him jam the claw end into the door frame. I could barely see the door and frame begin to twist away from each other as the pressure and claw separated and pushed the hinges.
I began to get very tired and stopped focusing on my breathing. My shoulders and chest got tight as my body heated up inside my coat. Sweat began running down my back. I twisted to deliver another blow and felt my weakness as I swung the axe forward.
I knew the next blow would be weak. What I didn't know was that I was also slightly left of center on the claw which caused the axe to glance off the end and smack right across Shrub's knuckles.
To Shrub's credit he didn't even shout in anger or pain. He quickly looked back at me with confusion. Almost as if to say, "What did you do that for?!"
"Are you okay?" I asked with true horror in my voice. I hoped I hadn't broken his knuckles. At the very least I was sure he was going to have a bruised hand.
Chief looked around the door as I hesitated. "What's going on?" he grumbled.
"Just go!" shouted Shrub. He was determined to keep his composure and get the job done.
I took a deep breath and hammered the axe to the Halligan again and again. I couldn't even count how many times I kept hitting that thing hoping for the door to finally give.
Chief finally exclaimed, "Good! Now push!"
Thankfully Shrub had gotten the Halligan into the right space between the door and the frame and he shoved that door wide open. Boom!
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What is your favorite fireground tool? How do you keep in shape to meet the demands of the job? How do you keep yourself and your fingers safe during Forcible Entry?
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