July 30, 2002 – LODD Lieutenant John Mickel,30. Firefighter Dallas Begg,20. Osceola (FL) County Fire-Rescue Members of Osceola County Fire-Rescue and the Orlando Fire Department were conducting live fire training in a vacant 1,462 square foot single-story concrete block single-family residential occupancy. The residence was on the site of a college that had been closed. Prior to the start of the exercises, all fire fighters on the scene participated in a walk-through of the structure. The object of the exercise was for 2 fire fighters to enter the structure in full structural protective clothing and SCBA and search for a rescue mannequin dressed in protective clothing. Once the mannequin was located, the fire fighters were to remove the mannequin from the structure. Two other teams were assigned to enter the structure and control the fire. Four instructors were placed inside the structure to monitor safety. A Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) crew consisting of 2 fire fighters stood by outside the structure. During the first evolution of the day, the mannequin was placed in the kitchen in the western portion of the structure. A bedroom in the northeast portion of the structure was used as the point of origin for the fire. The bedroom was just inside of the front door of the structure on the right side of the hallway. Fuel for the fire consisted of pallets and straw placed in and outside of a closet in the bedroom. The fuel was ignited with a road flare. Some time prior to the beginning of the training evolution, a foam mattress was placed on top of the burning pallets and straw. Lieutenant Mickel and Fire Fighter Begg entered the structure as the search and rescue team at 1011. They entered the bedroom to perform a search as the first attack team entered the structure behind them. The second attack team stood by at the front door. When fire fighters entered the structure, they found zero visibility with heavy heat and smoke. The safety officer monitoring the interior lost track of the search and rescue team, thinking that they had exited the fire room and passed him. The safety officer began to search the rest of the structure in an attempt to locate Lieutenant Mickel and Fire Fighter Begg. At that time, the attack team began to apply water in short bursts to the fire room as the windows of the room were broken out by a firefighter on the exterior. A great deal of steam was produced as the water was applied. When the window was broken out, the fire room flashed over. The fire fighter who had ventilated the window reached inside and found the heat damaged shell of a fire fighters helmet. The helmet discovery was reported to the IC. The IC asked repeatedly for an accountability report from the search and rescue team with no answer. The second attack team entered the structure and extinguished the fire in the area of origin. After the fire was controlled, the fire fighters from the second attack team began to overhaul the room. They found a form on the floor in fire fighters protective clothing and assumed that the form was the training mannequin. The IC did not receive any response to his calls to the search and rescue team, so he ordered a personnel accountability report and ordered the RIT team to enter the structure and find the search and rescue team. The time was 1120. Positive personnel accountability reports were received from all teams except the search and rescue team. The IC ordered an evacuation of the structure. As the second attack team began to leave the structure, they reached down to drag out the form that they thought was a mannequin and found that the form was Lieutenant Mickel. As Lieutenant Mickel was removed through the window, the body of Fire Fighter Begg was found. The report of fire fighters down was transmitted at 1024. Both fire fighters were provided with ALS-level EMS services and transported to the hospital where they were pronounced dead. The cause of death for both fire fighters was listed as burns and smoke inhalation. The carbon monoxide level for Lieutenant Mickel was found to be 23 percent and the level for Firefighter Begg was found to be 22.5 percent. Fire Fighter Begg had been employed by Osceola County Fire-Rescue for 8 days. Lieutenant Mickel was a 9-year veteran of the department.
Posted on: Wed, 30 Jul 2014 13:58:54 +0000
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