All Blog Posts (3,119)

Training is an issue in any department. At some levels the firefighters cannot get enough training. Whereas some, well, we know how they act. We tend to decide if a training was successful or not by getting those “other guys” to step up and train with us. Could we be missing something though? Are we capable of detecting Warning Flags in training? Do we always have control over those warnings? Let us look at some self-diagnosis.

• Does your training staff (Training Officers,…

Most Firefighters understand what a mayday is and are familiar with Rapid Intervention Crews. What you may not know is that the NFPA has a standard for the qualifications and training "to save our own." Over the weekend, I attended a NFPA 1407 implementation course. This 8-hour session concentrated on the standard and ways to integrate it into our training so we meet the standard for RIC. Rather then get into my own thoughts and knowledge of the subject; I would rather publish a simple list…

If you have a high rise or respond on mutual aid to a high rise district, do you know if they are marked for floor identification? If so, do you know how they corresspond with the interior labels? High rise buildings are marked differently, if at all. In our area the windows are typically marked with a reflective sticker, one on every fifth floor. Where this gets tricky is when the interior floors are labeled differently.

This high rise has red circle on the corner on the fifth floor…

This training idea was sent from David Walsh, Chair of the Fire Science Program at Dutchess Community College in NY.

In this video about an aircraft carrier, note the many parallels between…

http://doug-mitchell.blogspot.com/2012/01/check-your-dance-card.html

I admit it, it's happened to me... and I am sure that it's happened to you too. Honestly, it’s just easy to let it happen.  You can try to justify it, in your own mind by saying that; it's just that we love what we do, and we want to do it all the time!  When fire presents itself, we want to get right in there and go to work. …

It is a fresh new year - full of hopes, dreams, and challenges. Many of us will use the new year as a launching pad for personal improvement and an opportunity to accomplish important goals. Maybe yours is to advance within your department, to finally run that extra mile, or simply lose a few pounds - whatever it is, it's a great time reevaluate and implement…

Edison may have quoted "I have not failed 700 times. I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those 700 ways will not work. When I have eliminated the ways that will not work, I will find the way that will work." In our line of work we must succeed the first time and it’s usually “trial by fire”. How we can always be successful is that we learn from both our failures and successes.



Recently my company was dispatched to a chimney fire. It was the typical M.O. We…

This drill idea is from Phil Burden in SC.

If your out or on your way back from a run and see a gasoline tanker making a delivery at a filling station, stop and ask the driver if he has any time to review some of the parts of the tanker.  Read on.

Pass it on!

As the title says, if your life is in the balance, you want to be sure that you are as prepared as possible right?

Then why is it that on fires in cities and towns big and small, you can find videos or pictures of firefighters getting off the rig without tools? Or worse... carrying a tool then not using it?

I work with some great firemen who you know will grab the same tool everytime they get off the rig because they are masters at using the tool efficiently and expertly. I…

As the title says, if your life is in the balance, you want to be sure that you are as prepared as possible right?

Then why is it that on fires in cities and towns big and small, you can find videos or pictures of firefighters getting off the rig without tools? Or worse... carrying a tool then not using it?

I work with some great firemen who you know will grab the same tool everytime they get off the rig because they are masters at using the tool efficiently and expertly. I…

Watch the video of this heavily involved 2-story balloon frame house. Note the wind and the exposures. Give us your RECEO breakdown, initial actions and initial rig placement. Have fun!

WATCH THE VIDEO HERE!!!

Hard to believe it's been four years since I lost my friend and mentor. It took a few years after his death to put my feelings into an editorial cartoon and I desperately hope this message will help others out there!



Listen and be involved in their lives - be there for them!



R.I.P., my…

I occasionally get requests for advice on problems others are having in their respective departments. The topics range from how to get away from officer elections, officers who don't train, senior firefighters who are not buying in to new ideas and how to get their departments to train more. Every situation is different and it is tough to offer much without being directly involved. So, inevitably, I offer a diplomatic thought, which I hate to do. But, we know there is always two sides…

“The National Fire Protection Association list 13 attributes that the job of firefighting requires. Most are physical- the ability to climb a lot of stairs, lug a lot of gear, move heavy hoses around, rescue large people and the like. But one goes under the helmet. The NFPA says a firefighter ‘must be capable of critical, time sensitive, complex problem solving during physical exertion in stressful, hazardous environments (including hot, dark, tightly enclosed spaces)…

Get a front row seat next to the Battalion Chief for this working Multiple Dwelling fire in Brooklyn.  Listen to the BC give great radio reports, great size-up information and even take time to talk to the neighbors.  Nice video with links to the popular conversation on Facebook.

Other things you'll see:

• The Command presence
• Notice the professionalism of the operating crews
• Notice the window A/C unit falling to the street (around :40)
• Notice the…

Have you ever heard someone say on the fireground or back at the firehouse, "Man I sure was lucky on that one", I have and I thought to myself, why do they say or feel that way? Shouldn't we be saying, "Man, if it weren't for my training I wouldn't have got out of that situation". Your training is what you fall back to each and everyday. When the stuff hits the fan or you find yourself in a sticky situation, don't rely on "luck" but what you have learned throughout your career to see you…

Take a look at the pictures and ask a few questions. There are always variables that we don't know about using a still photograph, but we can put ourselves in that picture and think about what we would do. The idea is to consider different approaches and outcomes and keeping ourselves ready should a similar even occur.

1. Is there tenable space in this…

There have been numerous complaints from a small group about my latest seat belt cartoon. Enough so that Brother John Willgohs felt compelled to share his story of an apparatus accident that happened in 1998. If you can read this, and look at the attached photo without realizing the necessity for you and your crew to buckling-up, well, maybe it's time for you to…

There have been numerous complaints from a small group about my latest seat belt cartoon. Enough so that Brother John Willgohs felt compelled to share his story of an apparatus accident that happened in 1998. If you can read this, and look at the attached photo without realizing the necessity for you and your crew to buckling-up, well, maybe it's time for you to…