Toronto: Five alarm fire throws numerous residents to the streets 12-10-2020

This five-alarm fire at a Toronto Community Housing (TCH) seniors’ apartment building in the city’s north end Thursday evening was a significant event.

Emergency crews were called to the 14-storey, 389-unit apartment building on Bathurst Street, south of Steeles Avenue West, just before 8:25 p.m.

Heavy flames were on the east side of the building with smoke filling the building after crews arrived.

Read more details here:

4 injured, 1 critically, after 5-alarm fire at Toronto Community Housing seniors’ high-rise

https://globalnews.ca/news/7515606/apartment-fire-bathurst-steeles-toronto/

You can also see this other video related to the fire:

What is a five-alarm fire? Multiple-alarm fire labels are - one-alarm fires, two-alarm fires, three-alarm fires, etc. These are categories classifying the seriousness of fires, commonly used in the United States and in Canada, particularly indicating the level of response by local authorities.

The term multiple-alarm is certainly a quick way of indicating that a fire is severe and is difficult to contain. This system of classification is used by both fire departments and news agencies.

The most widely used formula for multi-alarm designation is based on the number of units (firetrucks for example) and firefighters responding to a fire. The more vehicles and firefighters responding, the higher the alarm designation would be.

Firefighting units can be assigned, such as:

Engine Company

Ladder Company

Battalion Chief

Squad Company

Rescue Company

Division Chief

Deputy Chief

RAC Unit (Recuperation and Care)

Satellite

Safety Battalion Chief

SOC Battalion Chief

Tactical Support Unit

Field Communications Unit

Field Communications Battalion Chief

Mask Service Unit (Vehicle has the ability to replenish air used by firefighters to breathe in a fire)

Air Recon Chief (on Brooklyn Box)

Mobile Command Unit

Planning Section Chief

It seems that the number one cause of death related to fires is smoke inhalation. Smoke inhalation occurs when you breathe in the products of combustion during a fire. Combustion results from the rapid breakdown of a substance by heat (more commonly called burning). Smoke is certainly a mixture of heated particles and gases.

What kind of respirators do firefighters usually use? Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) is the respirator commonly used by firefighters. These use their own air tank to supply clean air, so you don't need to worry about filters. They also protect against higher concentrations of dangerous chemicals.

Some people think about how to become a firefighter. Firefighter jobs are out there, such as: volunteer firefighter, wildland firefighter, rural and urban.

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