By Louis Sclafani
As a fire instructor, I have a common theme in all of my classes: Be a professional. By this, I mean you should know your job, know your tools, and always do the right thing. When it comes to driving emergency vehicles, it is no different.
If you have attended FDIC International or even a regional training conference, you may have noticed some of the most well-attended seminars are those that cover driver training. This is one topic that is common to all fire departments, big or small, across the country. Training officers are tasked with either developing or enhancing their driver training programs.
The problem is that we do a lot: fire, emergency medical services (EMS), hazmat, auto extrications, technical rescue, preplans, inspections, public education. Our time is valuable, and we need training in all of these fields. But, the common denominator for all of these tasks is that we drive to each and every one. Whether it’s responding to calls or heading out to training, we get behind the wheel of our trucks for everything we do.
Driver Training Requirements
So, just how much driver training do we get? In many cases, not much. While not all states are the same, most are similar. Let’s consider my home state of Florida. Nothing-no law or statute-says that the driver of a 60,000-pound fire truck responding with lights and sirens has to have any more than a regular old driver’s license. There is no mandatory additional training required. Drive to work in your Prius, and you’re good.
The state does offer an apparatus and pump operator certification. You must attend two 40-hour classes covering apparatus operation and pump operation, and both have a classroom and practical session. After you have successfully passed both of these classes, you can take the state certification test. This is only a written test-no practical testing. Also, it’s a one-and-done certification. There is no recertification requirement. Some departments do require their drivers to obtain this certification, and that’s it-no in-house program other than someone showing you how the truck works. Then again, some departments have an extensive in-house program that complements the certification. The point is: There is no standard, and every department can do as much or as little as it wants. Sadly, many do way too little.
Interestingly, if you hold a paramedic, emergency medical technician, fire inspector, or fire instructor certification, there is a recertification requirement.
Perhaps you are wondering about an emergency vehicle operations course (EVOC) or emergency vehicle driver training (EVDT). We have to do that, right? Again, there is no mandatory requirement to drive a fire truck. If you are an EMS provider, the HRS rules governing EMS do require EVDT. So if you don’t deliver EMS, there is no requirement unless it is required by your insurance carrier.
What about the Insurance Services Office (ISO)? Surely it has a training requirement. Actually, it does. To meet ISO’s training requirement, you need 240 hours of company training. If you happen to be a driver, 12 of those hours should be driver-related. This is a broad statement. This means you could do pump training, watch a video, do a group discussion, etc. and meet the requirement. It does not give specific direction on topics to be covered. As far as it being mandatory or not, it all depends. Some departments put a lot of effort into meeting ISO requirements; some not so much.
Finally this brings us to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). NFPA 1500, Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program, suggests that departments follow the guidelines