All Blog Posts (3,145)

( I wrote this 7 years ago, much of it still applies. I updated it a bit as well.)

So much has been discussed about firefighter safety lately. We tend to think about firefighter safety as it relates to the fire ground, accountability systems, offensive vs. defensive fire strategies, rapid intervention teams, and the list goes on. What often times is left off of that list is fire prevention. Fire prevention…

The recent notifications of the FDIC 2017 instructors places a great responsibility to those chosen to pass on your acquired knowledge to others. Knowledge gained through experience, education and probably a failure of some sort that may have had you rethink what you were doing and how you were you doing it is the knowledge we need to pass on.  It is my understanding that over…

I recently posted a question for discussion on my Twitter and Facebook regarding formalizing the mentoring process. Most of the respondents stated most mentoring was informal. One of the respondents even stated that it shouldn’t be a formalized process. I must say that I agree that informal mentoring is effective, however the business world has been using formal mentoring for a long time with great success. I suggest that if the fire service were to establish formal mentoring it would help…

Tallest Hybrid Mass Timber Building Brock Commons Phase 1

Vancouver, British Columbia University of British Columbia Point Grey campus

One of the tallest mass timber buildings in the world is under construction at the University of British Columbia Point Grey campus. The 18-story student residence building will provide housing…

If you go back in time, especially with Fire Engineering, you’ll most likely find hundreds of articles on leadership. And you’ll find hundreds more on firefighter safety, both on the training ground and on the fireground. Many great fire service leaders who have gone before us and the ones who are among us still today, have most likely told the many of us to “lead by example”. It’s a simple message that carries with it so many lessons that young and inexperienced firefighters can place in…

In my latest book, Barn Boss Leadership, which released this month. I discuss an individual’s sources of power. We typically think of stripes and bugles as indicating power within the fire department organization, especially in the fire service and military. However, there are several sources of power which do not fall into the “Legitimate” source of power category. Legitimate Power comes directly from stripes and bugles, however, this is not the most influential source of power. The United…

Consumer Drawings

Ever wonder about those vehicle images that show a color coded picture of the different steels used in the body structure? …

Be Selfish with your Personal Fitness

The Olympics are here, and most of us have been watching our American athletes as they perform to the best of their ability. We sit mesmerized watching these athletes compete against the best from other countries. These athletes are the elite of the elite, and they are amazing to watch. We cheer at successes and cringe at defeat right…

“Strong minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, weak minds discuss people.”

― Socrates



Apparently Socrates was a man of vision to foresee civility's death by the social media firing squad! We have forgotten how to have a disagreement in this country (and perhaps globally) and how to discuss our differences in a respectful way. Furthermore,…

When it comes to extrication tools, everyone has their personal preferences. Having the opportunity to travel the country teaching, I have had the opportunity to use most the tools out there at one time or another. This weeks “Quick Tip” will cover my personal opinion on the controversial topic of tool sizes/weights. You will get various…

With the plethora of tools and equipment available in the fire service, it’s safe to say that there is a tool for every need. Unfortunately, with most fire departments, (both career and volunteer), tight budgets can hinder the purchase of the latest…

In an example of how far the arguments against the MFA approach have devolved, we now find ourselves facing critics within the fire service who complain that our tactics have become too safe!  More specifically, they contend that the focus has been taken away from rescuing victims and protecting property to instead maintaining our own safety.  Having been an outspoken advocate of these principles for over…

     Its easy to pass the buck.  Many in our society deflect responsibility as often as possible to avoid having to answer directly for their actions, or lack thereof.  In the fire service passing the buck can be game with deadly consequences.  When we assume any role in the fire service we must be prepared to shoulder the responsibilities associated with our job.  These responsibilities involve obligations to ourselves, our families, our subordinates and superiors, our organization, the…

Training a Different Generation

By David Rhodes 

From the August 2016 Issue of …

Here on the east coast, soon we will be entering the colder months. As the cold settles in the furnaces will come on, and with this comes potential carbon monoxide (CO) issues. When a 911 call comes in for a CO alarm in my county a unit that carries a 4 gas meter is dispatched. There are times that a call comes in for a sick person and only an ambulance is dispatched. Fortunately all our units have passive CO meters on their EMS bags. These small meters are always on and will alert when…

Every time your company hits the street whether it's for a fire call, ems run, or training opportunities almost always present themselves to identify potential hazards in your area. This is especially true for hoarding conditions. As discussed in the previous post many size-up indicators of hoarding conditions can be easily found especially with contents that seem to "flow" from the structure. However no two scenes are ever the same, especially in differing urban and suburban environments,…

WATCHING INTEREST RATES

I am a firm believer that Fire Service performance directly correlates with Fire Service leadership.

Show me a high performance fire company, a highly regarded firehouse, a stand out fire district or an entire fire department that consistently out performs others…