General
fully involved
What does fully involved mean?
Size-up shorthand meaning fire has extended to the point that the entire structure (or a defined area of it) is burning, flames are venting from multiple openings, and interior operations are no longer survivable. When the first-due officer calls "fully involved" on the radio, the strategy flips from offensive (go inside, save lives) to defensive (surround it, drown it, protect the exposures). Usually means the building is a loss.
"Dispatch, Engine 2 on scene — two-story wood frame, fully involved, going defensive, striking the second alarm."
Origin
Standard American fire service size-up vocabulary, codified in NFPA training materials and the National Incident Management System.
Frequently asked questions
What does "fully involved" mean in firefighting?
Fully involved means the whole building is on fire — so crews aren't going inside.
How do you use "fully involved" in a sentence?
"The structure was fully involved on arrival, so we went defensive."
What happens when a fire is fully involved?
With the entire building ablaze, firefighters switch to an exterior, defensive attack rather than entering.
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