Mayday Procedures for Firefighters: When and How to Call for Help

In 25 years on the job, I have heard two real Maydays on the fireground. Both times, the firefighter who called lived. I have also worked incidents where someone should have called a Mayday and did not. The outcomes were worse.

The Mayday is the most critical radio transmission in the fire service, and it is the one we practice the least. That needs to change.

When to Call a Mayday

This is where most firefighters struggle. They know the format. They know they are supposed to call. But in the moment, they hesitate. They think maybe they can fix it. Maybe it is not that bad. Maybe they do not want to cause a scene.

Those thoughts have killed firefighters.

Call a Mayday immediately if any of the following occur. You are lost or disoriented and you do not know where you are in the building or how to get out. You are trapped by structural collapse, entanglement, or debris blocking your path. Your low-air alarm is going off and you are not within 60 seconds of a way out. You are injured and cannot self-rescue. You witness a crew member go down. Conditions rapidly deteriorate around you, including flashover signs, structural instability, or rapid fire progression that cuts off your exit.

The standard that should be in your head is this: if you are in a situation that you cannot resolve within 60 seconds using your own skills and tools, it is a Mayday.

The LUNAR Format

LUNAR gives the RIT and Command the information they need to find and rescue you.

L is for Location. Where are you in the building? Be as specific as possible. Floor, quadrant or division, room or area, and landmarks like near a window or by the front door.

U is for Unit. Your company designation. Engine 5, Truck 7, Rescue 1.

N is for Name. Your actual name. Not a firefighter. Your name. This helps Command track who is in trouble and immediately identify your last known assignment.

A is for Assignment and Air. What were you doing when things went wrong? Also report your air supply if you can read your gauge.

R is for Resources Needed. What do you need? A hoseline to your location, the RIT, a ladder to a specific window. Be specific about what will help.

Example Mayday Transmission

Mayday, Mayday, Mayday. Firefighter down, second floor, Division Charlie, near the back bedroom. Engine 5. Williams. I was advancing the attack line when the floor gave way. I am on the first floor now, under debris. I have about 5 minutes of air. I need the RIT and a hoseline to my location. Mayday.

Say Mayday three times. Give your LUNAR information. Repeat Mayday at the end. Stay calm. Controlled breathing saves air and keeps your transmission clear.

What to Do While Waiting for Rescue

Activate your PASS device if it has not auto-activated. Conserve air by slowing your breathing and staying calm. Panic kills faster than fire. Stay oriented near a wall, a window, or another landmark. Make noise by banging on the floor, the wall, anything that will help the RIT hear you. Follow your hoseline out if you can. The hose leads back to the exit. Transmit updates if conditions change.

Do not take off your SCBA facepiece even if you think you are close to a window. Do not move aimlessly. Move with purpose toward a wall, a window, or a hoseline. Do not give up. Rescue teams have pulled firefighters from situations that seemed impossible.

The Culture Problem

In too many firehouses, calling a Mayday is seen as admitting you failed. That culture kills people. Calling a Mayday is not failure. It is professional competence. It is the same as a pilot declaring an emergency. No one questions the pilot's skill for doing it. They would question it if they did not.

If your department's culture discourages Mayday calls, that culture needs to change. It starts with officers normalizing it in training. Practice the call. Reward the call. Make it automatic.

Under extreme stress, your fine motor skills degrade by up to 70 percent. Your cognitive processing narrows. Your ability to form complex sentences drops dramatically. The only way to perform a Mayday call under real emergency conditions is to have practiced it so many times that it is automatic.

Practice your Mayday transmission today. First Due Co. has voice-based radio drills that let you practice Mayday calls, CAN reports, and initial radio reports with AI grading at firstdueco.com.