Forcible Entry

1. Forcible Entry Intermediate SFFMA Objectives: 2-02.01 4HRS Received

2. Sizing Up Door — Considerations • Locked/blocked door is primary obstacle in gaining access to building • Critical issues • Recognizing how door functions • Knowing how constructed • Knowing how locked (Continued) Firefighter I

3. Sizing Up Door — Considerations • Doors function in one of following ways • Swinging • Sliding • Revolving • Overhead (Continued) Firefighter I

4. Sizing Up Door — Considerations • Size up • Try door to make sure locked before forcing —Try before you pry • If locked, begin additional size-up • Look at door and immediate surroundings • If no glass panel or side window, check whether swinging or another type (Continued) Firefighter I

5. DISCUSSION QUESTION When should you break or open a window? Firefighter I

6. Sizing Up Door — Considerations • If proves to be too well secured, look for another • Type of door and lock installed determine tools/techniques required to force Firefighter I

7. Wooden Swinging Door Characteristics • Three types • Panel • Slab • Ledge • Most are panel or slab Firefighter I

8. Panel Doors • Made of solid wooden members inset with panels • Panels may be wood or other materials • Panels may be held in place by molding that can be removed for quick access Firefighter I

9. Slab Doors • Among most common • Two configurations • Solid core • Hollow core (Continued) Firefighter I

10. Slab Doors • Most interior doors in newer residences are hollow core • Lightweight • Relatively inexpensive • Exterior slab usually solid core (Continued) Firefighter I

11. Slab Doors • Most do not have windows, other openings • Raised panels purely decorative • Solid-core doors much more substantial, heavier, more expensive than hollow-core Firefighter I

12. Ledge Doors • Also known as batten doors • Found in variety of occupancies • Planks fastened to horizontal, diagonal ledge boards • Lock with various locks Firefighter I

13. Metal Swinging Door Characteristics • Classifications • Hollow metal • Metal clad • Tubular • Difficult to force • Most often set in metal frame (Continued) Firefighter I

14. Metal Swinging Door Characteristics • Rigid, resist being penetrated • When set in metal frame, power tools almost always needed to open • Construction varies depending on intended use • When ordered to force, consider power tools Firefighter I

15. Sliding Doors • Most residential sliding doors travel left or right • Those in retail businesses often travel in both directions (Continued) Firefighter I

16. Sliding Doors • Operation • Do not actually slide • Small roller/guide wheel make easy to move • Some are pocket doors (Continued) Firefighter I

17. Sliding Doors • More common type is assembly used in patio areas of residencies • Patio sliding doors may be barred or blocked by metal rod Firefighter I

18. Revolving Doors • Made up of glass door panels that revolve around center shaft • Lock in various ways • All equipped with mechanism that allows locking open in emergency (Continued) Firefighter I

19. Revolving Doors • Not all lock open in same way • Preincident surveys should locate revolving doors/identify how individual mechanisms work (Continued) Firefighter I

20. Revolving Doors • Three types of mechanisms used to lock open • Panic-proof • Drop-arm • Metal-braced Firefighter I

21. Overhead Doors • Wide variety of uses • Residential, commercial garage doors • Service doors at loading docks • Constructed of variety of materials • Wood • Metal • Fiberglass (Continued) Firefighter I

22. Overhead Doors • Difficult to force open • Sectional doors • Tilt-slab doors • Roll-up doors • Telescoping doors Firefighter I

23. Forcing Entry Through Overhead Doors • One of most common methods of cutting roll-up or sheet curtain door was to make triangular cut in center • Technique has fallen out of favor because it takes too long to cut, creates smaller opening than square or rectangular cut (Continued) Firefighter I

24. Forcing Entry Through Overhead Doors • When must be forced, best to use rotary saw to cut square or rectangular opening about 6 feet (2 m) high and nearly full width • Once firefighters have interior access, should use lift mechanism to open fully Courtesy of Cedar Rapids (IA) Fire Department. Firefighter I

25. DISCUSSION QUESTION What should be done with overhead doors during fire operations? Firefighter I

26. Fire Doors • Movable assemblies designed to cover doorway openings in rated separation walls in event of fire in one part of building • Components (Continued) Firefighter I

27. Fire Doors • Several standard types • May be manually, mechanically, electronically operated • May or may not be counterbalanced Firefighter I

28. Fire Door Operation • Two standard means by which fire doors operate: self-closing and automatic-closing (Continued) Firefighter I

29. Fire Door Operation • Vertical sliding are normally open but close automatically • Those that slide horizontally preferable to other types when space limited • Overhead rolling may be installed where space limitations prevent installation of other types (Continued) Firefighter I

30. Fire Door Operation • Most interior do not lock when they close • Doors used on exterior openings may be locked • Precautionary measure is to block open door to prevent closing and trapping firefighters Firefighter I

31. Mortise Lock • Designed to fit into cavity in door • Can be found on private residences, commercial buildings, industrial buildings Firefighter I

32. Bored (Cylindrical) Lock • Installation involves boring two holes at right angles to one another: one through face of door, another in edge of door • One type is key-in-knob lock Firefighter I

33. Rim Lock • One of most common in use today • Surface-mounted • Used as add-on lock • Found in all types of occupancies • Can be identified from outside Firefighter I

34. Padlock • Portable or detachable locking devices • Two basic types • Standard • Heavy-duty Firefighter I

35. DISCUSSION QUESTION Which type of lock do you think is the easiest to force? Why? Firefighter I

36. Rapid-Entry Lockbox System • Can eliminate problems presented by locked doors • All necessary keys, combinations kept in lockbox • Lockbox located at high-visibility location on building’s exterior (Continued) Firefighter I

37. Rapid-Entry Lockbox System • Only fire department carries key to open all boxes in jurisdiction • Proper mounting is the responsibility of property owner • Fire department responsibilities • Unauthorized duplication of key prevented Firefighter I

38. Conventional Forcible Entry • Use of standard fire department tools to force doors, windows to gain access • Number of tools, tool combinations may be used Firefighter I

39. Breaking Glass • One of fastest, least destructive techniques • Either glass in door or sidelight broken • Once glass broken, door can be unlocked from inside (Continued) Firefighter I

40. Breaking Glass • In some situations, may be more difficult, expensive • Techniques for safely breaking glass Firefighter I

41. Forcing Swinging Doors • Most common type is one that swings at least 90 degrees to open, close • Most have hinges mounted on one side permitting swinging in both directions • Can be inward, outward, both (Continued) Firefighter I

42. Forcing Swinging Doors • Double-acting swinging doors swing 180 degrees • Forcing entry through all types of swinging doors involves basic skills Firefighter I

43. Forcing Outward-Swinging Doors • Present problems for firefighters • Often possible to use nail set to drive hinge pins out of hinges and remove doors (Continued) Firefighter I

44. Forcing Outward-Swinging Doors • May be possible to break hinges off with rambar or Halligan • Can be forced by inserting blade of rambar or Halligan into space between door and doorjamb and prying that space open wide Firefighter I

45. Special Circumstances • Additional measures may need to be taken to force a door • Double-swinging doors • Doors with drop bars • Tempered plate glass doors Firefighter I

46. Through-the-Lock Forcible Entry • Preferred for many commercial doors, residential security locks, padlocks, high-security doors • Very effective, does minimal damage • Requires good size-up of door and lock mechanism (Continued) Firefighter I

47. Through-the-Lock Forcible Entry • Removing lock cylinder only half the job • Special tools may be needed A-Tool K-Tool J-Tool Shove Knife Firefighter I

48. Forcing Entry with Padlocks • To force entry, either padlock or device to which fastened must be defeated • Conventional forcible entry tools can be used (Continued) Firefighter I

49. Forcing Entry with Padlocks • Additional tools available to make forcible entry easier • Size-up of lock important Firefighter I

50. Special Tools/Techniques for Padlocks • If shackle exceeds ¼ inch (6 mm) and lock, including body, is case-hardened, conventional methods may not work • Firefighters may need to use • Duck-billed lock breaker • Bam-bam tool Firefighter I