Three Pittsburgh firefighters died on February 14, 1995, when they ran out of air and were unable to escape from the interior of a burning dwelling. This incident illustrates the need for effective incident management, communications, and personnel accountability systems, even at seemingly routine incidents. It also reinforces the need for regular maintenance and inspection of self-contained breathing apparatus, emphasizes the need for PASS devices to be used at every fire, and identifies the need for training to address firefighter survival in unanticipated emergency situations.
