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Report cites water‑supply, search priorities and command weaknesses in Wichita fire response
Summary
Jensen Hughes told the commission initial engine tactics, delayed continuous water supply, uncoordinated searches and late establishment of incident command contributed to a disorganized fireground and delayed primary searches at the Brook Hollow fire.
Jensen Hughes reviewed fireground actions and found the Wichita Fire Department's policies were generally complete on paper but not always followed during the incident. The team emphasized five interrelated elements—deployment, water supply and fire attack, search and rescue, mayday, and command—and described how choices in each area affected rescue timing.
"We found numerous Wichita Fire Department operational policies that were not followed at this incident," Verne Champlin said. The firm noted engine 15 deployed attack lines from its onboard tank without an established continuous supply, engine crews briefly operated without water when the tank was exhausted, and crews performed searches in uninvolved buildings before completing Building 300's search.
Jensen Hughes also highlighted that command was not formally established until the seventh arriving unit, allowing companies to freelance and diluting coordinated search resources. The team recommended clearer adherence to the operations manual, limits on handlines flowing from booster tanks before supply is established, and immediate prioritization of search and rescue near the fire area (including vent‑enter search where appropriate).
Commissioners asked whether vent‑enter search (VES) in Unit 306 could have reached the bathroom; Jensen Hughes said VES was appropriate for 306 but could not guarantee it would have changed the ultimate outcome.
