Jim
Thanks for joining CSF (Common Sense Firefighting). It's a leadership and fire ground decision making page on the site. Jump into any discussion at any time. There are always some good one going on. If you're going to FDIC we'vre having a meet and greet on TUESDAY nite of that week with the location to be announced. Let us know if you'd be interested on the CSF page so we a can get a fair head count. Where is Niskayuna Fire and what do yuo guys do for officer development?
Jim Mason
Chgo FD

Jim
We have much of the same problems here in IL. The suburbs have smaller first due alarm responses than the city. We also have the state directed ciriculum going on here, which doesn;t fully satisfy the needs of both big city and small suburb towns. Most of the problems with officer development are with the diecison making process for first due companies. To look at the maydays, it happen very early in the fire or late after guys are tired. The late ones are a command problem of proper relief , but the early ones are often inadequate decisons on conditions of the incident.
There's a few of us that are working on a program in the suburbs that we think will make that transition, with mostly hands on/ live fire training for first due officers. It'll all be officer decision making based on real fire ground senarios. We're going to roll it out this summer and try running some guys through it then. There is good interest in it already here in the metro area. Officer develpoment, which is really decision making on the fire ground , is what the fire service needs to slow down the carnage.
Jim

I was just at the rock in Sept and they gave me sylabis of the Flips program . It looks good on paper and the facilities they have there is unbelievable. I;m sure it would be good training for the new officers just because of being able to get the hands on training.