Lights are essential tools for firefighters during structure fire suppression and rescue. They are necessary for situational awareness, illuminating the exterior pathways and structure entries, reading smoke, and searching for potential victims.
Common lights used in the foreground are portable scene lights, helmet lights, right-angle (or 90-degree) lights, and more recently, drone lights. In this article, FoxFury look at different types of lights and how they can be used for structural firefighting.
Needs and Pain Points
- Long Shifts - Users' work is demanding and sometimes the calls don't ever end. As users get towards the end of users shift, users are fatigued and may have compromised judgment.
- Equipment gets beat up - Equipment gets abused, day in and day out. Damaged or worn equipment requires more maintenance, more repair costs, and most importantly, is less dependable at critical times.
- Equipment needs to be lightweight and compact - Turnout gear, air tanks, and other equipment are heavy and bulky. Equipment and tools are only functional if they don't weigh users down or get in the way of working.
- Extreme temperatures - The heat of the fire users' suppression is the main concern. If users are working in cold climates, users could go from freezing temperatures to burning heat on the inside of a structure. These extreme fluctuations in temperature can wreak havoc on equipment.
- Structure fires are dynamic - The scene can change size or direction quickly. A building collapse, backdraft, or a change in wind direction forces operations to adjust quickly.
- Need to light the area that the truck scene lights can't reach - Truck scene lights can only light up the street side of the operation. Often the fire extends towards the charlie side of the structure where the truck lights can't illuminate.
- Obstacles hide in the dark - As noted in the point above, the unlit area around a structure can be dangerous with trip hazards and obstacles that lead to injury on the fireground.
How Do These Solutions Help Firefighters?
- Light the fireground immediately with portable lights that deploy in seconds.
- Create a safer scene and reduce injuries with lights that can be positioned anywhere on the scene.
- Use the lights in extreme conditions. All FoxFury lights are completely waterproof (IPX7) and NFPA 1971 fire-resistant.
- Self-sufficiency - Users don’t need to depend on the truck scene lights to get lights where users need them.
- Provide better intel for the incident command to make faster and better decisions.
Let's look at how each of these different solutions is used on the fireground.
Nomad® 360 Scene Light
The Nomad 360 scene light features a long runtime of 3-24 hours to last through the night
The Nomad 360 scene light provides 360°, area or spot beams giving users more options to fit users' needs. It features a long runtime of 3-24 hours to last through the night.
The 8 1/2’ maximum height extends over walls and vehicles for even illumination. The extended height also keeps the light out of the user's eye line for less brightness fatigue.
Benefits
- Quickly position lights where users need them when conditions change.
- Use the same light for search (spot), area, or 360° scene lighting configuration.
- Easily carry and deploy scene lights to the charlie side of the scene to increase safety.
- Illuminate over walls, fences, and vehicles with a maximum of 8.5' height.
Command+ LoPro White/Green Helmet Light
See wider and better with the FoxFury Command+ LoPro White & Green LED Helmet Light. This rugged fire-resistant firefighter helmet light provides hands-free illumination in all-weather conditions and delivers up to 100 lumens.
This ultra-slim design enables the light to clear the external face shield on most U.S.-style modern and traditional fire helmets. White & green LEDs are best suited for cutting through smoke in structural firefighting. This headlamp also features a highly visible red flashing LED in the battery pack that can be seen from over 1 mile (1.6km) away.
Benefits
- Have hands-free light always illuminating wherever users are looking.
- Experience less eye fatigue with a broad, even beam.
- Be more visible to the user's team and safer on the scene with the Rear Safety LED.
SideSlide C-Clamp Helmet Light
SideSlide C-Clamp delivers a powerful 275 lumens focused beam and is best for use in structural firefighting
Whether users need a flashlight or a helmet light, the FoxFury SideSlide C-Clamp allows for both. This rugged light comes with a custom adaptor that mounts to the side of a hard hat or firefighter helmet.
Press and hold the release lever to slide the flashlight out. Insert the light into the holder and once locked into place, the light becomes a hands-free helmet light. The SideSlide C-Clamp delivers a powerful 275 lumens focused beam and is best for use in structural firefighting along with rescue and industrial applications.
Benefits
- Compact smoke-cutting lights always illuminate where users are looking.
- Quickly transition from helmet light to handheld flashlight.
- Be more visible to the user's team and safer on the scene with the Rear Safety LED.
Breakthrough® BTS
The ultra-durable, low-profile BTS right-angle light provides a 500-lumen beam for cutting through smoke and illuminating the immediate surrounding area. The low-profile design lets users move more freely.
This compact and versatile lighting tool runs on (4) AA batteries and has a stainless steel clip in the back for hands-free use. It is impact resistant, submersible, and meets NFPA fire-resistant requirements.
Benefits
- Enjoy a smoke-cutting beam and a wider halo to see the periphery.
- It's comfortable to hold and easy to operate, even when wearing heavy fire gloves.
- The compact light head won't obstruct movement.
- Be confident that the BTS will survive the extreme conditions users have to work in with NFPA 1971 fire resistance rating and IPX7 waterproof rating.
- AA battery or rechargeable option to fit users' needs.
EXOLANDER© Drone Systems
EXOLANDER© Drone System allows users to mount anti-collision lights and spotlights to users drones
Expand the capability of users' drones and make them a complete aerial search tool. The EXOLANDER© Drone System is a custom, adaptable frame system that provides a more stable landing platform for users' drones.
It allows users to mount anti-collision lights, spotlights, and payload delivery systems to users' drones.
Benefits
- Fly, launch, and land more confidently with the larger, more stable footprint with landing skids.
- Use the tools users need for a search, overwatch, and aerial assessment.
- Keep the user's drone cleaner and drier when landing in wet or dusty environments.
- Drone-mounted spotlight can light roofs and remote spots that other lights may not reach. The drone pilot can follow firefighters as they move, always keeping them illuminated.
- The chief can make faster decisions when they see both the illuminated visual and thermal displays of the scene.
