Accident One

Name Of accident? Boscastle floods

When did the accident occur?

The incident occurred on 16th August 2004

What happened?

The Boscastle flood occurred on Monday, 16 August 2004 in the two villages of Boscastle and Crackington Haven in Cornwall, The villages suffered extensive damage after flash floods caused by an exceptional amount of rain that fell over eight hours that afternoon. The flood in Boscastle was filmed and extensively reported but the floods in Crackington Haven and Rocky Valley were not mentioned beyond the local news. 185 mm (7 inches) of rain fell over the high ground just inland of Boscastle. At the peak of the downpour, at about 15:40, 24.1mm of rain (almost one inch) was recorded as falling in just 15 minutes at Lesnewth, 2.5 miles (4 km) up the valley from Boscastle. In Boscastle, 89 mm (3.5 inches) of rain was recorded in 60 minutes. The rain was much localised: four of the nearest 10 rain gauges, all within a few miles of Boscastle, showed less than 3 mm of rain that day. The cause of the very heavy localised rain is thought to be an extreme example of what has become known as the Brown Willy effect. The torrential rain led to a 2 m (7 ft) rise in river levels in one hour. A 3 m (10 ft) wave, believed to have been triggered by water pooling behind debris caught under a bridge and then being suddenly released as the bridge collapsed, surged down the main road. Water speed was over 10 mph, more than enough to cause structural damage. It is estimated that 20,000,000 cubic meters of water flowed through Boscastle that day alone. The steep valley sides and the saturated surface ensured a high amount of surface run-off.

What were the causes of the accident?

Warm air picking up moisture - due to residual heat from the Atlantic sea Changes in farming practice in the area Sewage A reduction of trees and hedges higher up the valley causing water to flow through more quickly than would have been the case in the past

However, an episode of Discovery Channel's Perfect Disaster states that the floods might have been caused by a phenomenon called a "blocking high". A blocking high is a large area of static high pressure. It can happen anywhere in the world, and the effect is deadly because the high pressure can stall other weather systems around it. How many casualties were there? How long did it take for the fire service to mobilize? There werent any fatal accidents (deaths). However they were many minor injuries such as cuts and bruises and also slight hypothermia. Also many people had to have counselling due to shock Because it was a freak accident, it took the fire brigade from Delebole around 45 minutes to arrive at Boscastle. This could have been down to the fact of traffic leaving Boscastle to avoid the floods or even that the fire brigade underestimated how severe the floods actually were. There was 8 different fire services at Boscastle on the day of the floods. Each fire truck has 7 seats. So if each truck had only deployed 1 fire engine, then there would have been 42 Fire officers minimum. Pumps to get rid of excess water, building up around a certain area. Ladders to reach the top windows of houses as the bottom layers would be flooded. Rams to knock down doors.

How many firemen were required at the scene? What equipment did the fire service use at the scene?

What did the fire service actually do?

What preventative measures did the fire service have prepared for such a situation?

The fire fighters were the first public service on the scene and therefore had to take immediate control of the operation until the other public services arrived. The fire fighters were the public service which went into peoples houses, risking their own lives to save the stranded civilians of Boscastle. The fire fighters also had to pump water away from the streets and out of the houses The fire brigade advised the Village of Boscastle to install flood gates and culverts to help prevent any future flooding. The also higher the riverbanks and helped to rebuild Boscastle stronger and more resistance to further major incidents. Accident Two

Name Of accident?

9/11 terrorist attacks

When did the accident occur?

9/11/2001

What happened?

On the 11th of September 2001, 4 American commercial passenger jet airlines( American Airlines Flight 11, United Airlines Flight 175, American Airlines Flight 77, United Airlines Flight 93) were hijacked by 19 terrorists led by war criminal Al Qaeda in a series of suicide attacks on the United States of America. The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing everyone on board and many others working in the buildings. Both buildings collapsed within two hours, destroying nearby buildings and damaging others. The hijackers crashed a third airliner into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C. The fourth plane crashed into a field near Shanksville in rural Pennsylvania after some of its passengers and flight crew attempted to retake control of the plane, which the hijackers had redirected toward Washington, D.C and was

thought to be heading towards the Whitehouse.

What were the causes of the accident? How many casualties were there?

A series of hijacked planes by the terrorist organisation Al-Qaeda

How long did it take for the fire service to mobilize?

How many firemen were required at the scene? What equipment did the fire service use at the scene? What did the fire service actually do?

Around 3000 deaths, including the 19 hijackers and 2,977 victims. 246 victims on the four planes (from which there were no survivors), 2,606 in New York City in the World Trade Center and on the ground, and 125 at the Pentagon. About 292 people were killed at street level by burning debris and falling bodies of those who had jumped from the World Trade Center's windows. All the deaths in the attacks were civilians except for 55 military personnel killed at the Pentagon. New York City fire companies and EMS crews were deployed to the World Trade Center 5 1/2 minutes after the first aircraft struck the north tower. Chief officers set up a command center in the lobby as first arriving units entered the building and firefighters began the rescue attempts immediately The NYFD deployed 200 units to the site, with more than 400 firefighters,

A command centre with radios and documents etc. Fire hoses extinguishers. Safety landing equipment (for people at the lower stories of the WTC to jump out on. Ladders The fire fighter arrived at the scene within minutes of the attack and deployed fire fighters into the WTC within minutes of arriving. The fire fighter went into the world trade centres to help create an escape route for the civilians trying to escape the buildings. The fire fighters attempted to get as high up the WTC as they could. However before they could reach advance to the higher stories, the buildings collapsed and many fire fighters lost their lives because they were determined to save the civilians. Fire fighter were fighting the fire from outside the building until it collapsed. The fire brigade then had a new role of

What preventative measures did the fire service have prepared for such a situation?

finding civilians trapped under the rubble and getting them to safety. After the 9/11 attacks, the fire fighters then had to begin to clear the rubble away from the streets so that the US could carry on with society. Increase response time to accidents/incidents. Advance in equipment so that the can fight fires more effectively.

Accident Three Name Of accident? 7/7 bombings

When did the accident occur?

7th July 2005

What happened?

The 7/7 London bombings were a series of coordinated suicide attacks in London which targeted civilians using the public transport system during the morning rush hour. On the morning of Thursday, 7 July 2005, four Islamist home-grown terrorists detonated four bombs, three in quick succession aboard London Underground trains across the city and, later, a fourth on a double-decker bus in Tavistock Square.

What were the causes of the accident? How many casualties were there?

four Islamist home-grown terrorists detonated four bombs aboard London Underground trains across the city and, later, a fourth on a doubledecker bus in Tavistock Square. Fifty-two people were killed in the attacks, and over 700 more were injured.

How long did it take for the fire service to mobilize? How many firemen were required at the scene? What equipment did the fire service use at the scene? What did the fire service actually do?

It took the Fire service 6 minutes 14 seconds to mobilize and arrive at the first bombsite.

There was 2 units at the first bombsite each consisted of 5 fire fighters.

Flash lights, Fire extinguishers, ropes, ladders, cutting tools I.E the jaws of life.

The first group of firefighters said they could not enter the tunnel at Aldgate because they had not received official confirmation that the live electric rail had been turned off. One police officer stood on the rail to prove that it was no longer live - but the crew insisted they still needed word from London Underground managers. Four other firefighters had already gone into the train. The first crew reached King's Cross station at 0913 - but did not go to the scene until a second crew arrived at 0942. That was because their communication protocols demanded having backup teams available. One police officer reported seeing firefighters waiting on the escalator for colleagues to arrive, as the walking wounded began to emerge from a tunnel.

What preventative measures did the fire service have prepared for such a situation?

An incident response unit (IRU) is a governmentsupplied decontamination vehicle that was introduced in the wake of the September 11 attacks as part of the New Dimension scheme for equipping UK brigades with extensive disaster response vehicles for any major catastrophe or terrorist attack.