Emergency Rescue Shoring Techniques

John P. O’Connell joined the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) in 1979, where he served for 26 years, 18 with Rescue Company No. 3. He is a New York State certified instructor for the FDNY Department Division of Training, wrote and taught the FDNY’s Trench Rescue program, Collapse Rescue curriculum, and the Void Search program. He’s been a member of the Technical Rescue Development Committee for the State of New York since 1995 and group leader of the Building Collapse and Trench Rescue development committee for New York since 1994. He is a principal member of the NFPA Technical Committee on Technical Rescue and chairman of the Structural Collapse section for NFPA 1670 and 2500. He was task force leader of the FEMA US&R New York Task Force 1 (2001–2005), member of the FEMA US&R Incident Support Team (1995–2018), and lead shoring instructor for the US Army Corps of Engineers/FEMA US&R Structures Specialist Training Program (2000–present). He is the retired president of Collapse Rescue Systems, Inc. He has conducted training in more than 45 states as well as Japan, China, the Middle East, Germany, and Canada. He is an editorial advisory board member for Fire Engineering magazine, lead H.O.T. coordinator for FDIC, and has authored more than 30 articles on structural collapse topics for several trade journals.

• Acknowledgments1.An Introduction to Emergency Rescue Shoring ConceptsEmergency Rescue ShoringRescue Shoring Operations ObjectivesConcentrated versus DistributedBasic Rescue Shoring PointsThe Shoring SystemShoring Operations: Start-Up ConsiderationsShoring Size-Up: Additional InformationLumberLength-to-Diameter RatioNailsWedges2.The Use and Training of Rescue Personnel in Shoring OperationsThe Shoring TeamLarge OperationsTraining for the Rescue Shoring Firefighter3.Setting Up Your Shoring OperationsClassifying Your ShoresNailsCutting TableMarking Lumber for CutsMultiple Lumber Cuts in One PassCutting Sheets of PlywoodWedgesPrefabricated Headers and PostsDiagonal Braces and Raker Shores AnglesDetermining the Angle of Raker ShoresCalculating Load Weights4.Interior Rescue Shoring ProceduresInterior Shoring Size-UpThe Diagonal BraceThe T-ShoreThe Door ShoreThe Window ShoreThe Horizontal ShoreThe Laced-Post ShoreThe Plywood Laced-Post ShoreThe Vertical ShoreTwo-Post Vertical Shore5.Exterior Rescue Shoring ProceduresExterior Rescue ShoringLoad TransferRaker ShoresBad Angle CutSplicing RakersRaker Bracing SystemsThe Flying Shore6.The Shoring and Cribbing of Sloped SurfacesThe Sloped–Floor ShoreSloped–Floor Shore Type 3 on GroundSloped–Floor Shore Cross Bracing and AnglesBox Cribbing7.Additional Shoring OptionsTriple “T” ShoreFour-Post “T” ShoreBeveled Raker for Leaning WallThinking Outside the Box8.Tools and Equipment Utilized in Rescue ShoringHand ToolsTool AssignmentsAppendix: Tools to Order for a Shoring OperationHand ToolsElectrical ToolsBattery-Operated ToolsInitial Shoring ToolboxGlossaryIndex