Directive: 25-09 - Hidden Fires and Rekindles – Bathtub Issues
2025 Directives
Date Issued: 04/25/2025
Last Modified: 06/02/2025 14:03
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Operational Guidance: A serious concern has happened twice in the last few months.
Toledo Fire & Rescue has been dispatched to (2) Regular Alarms that eventually resulted in a second Regular Alarm being dispatched later to an obvious ‘Rekindle’.
Both of these incidents involved the initial fire getting underneath a bathtub and smoldering until it reignited back into a structure fire. Both of these incidents involved what appeared to be adequate initial efforts to detect any fire extension with TICs and the overhaul of the involved area. But still, a rekindle happened.
Neither bathtub was removed and the underside exposed until the second incident, and then the remaining fire was discovered. It is not usual practice to remove bathtubs but in both of these cases, they should have been!
TFRD crews perform extremely well in the vast majority of the structure fires we are called to and I stand by that declaration. But I ask that we all learn from the moments when we could have done better. Rekindles will usually happen because smoldering embers weren’t discovered before we left the scene. Be cognizant of our duty to return property without the threat of the incident continuing.
Effective Date: April 25, 2025