In this series, Fire Engineering Senior Editor Mary Jane Dittmar looks at the things that motivated and inspired instructors to present on their topics at FDIC International 2016. Segments will be posted on a regular basis up to and through the conference, April 18-23.

Frank Montagna
Battalion Chief (Ret.)
Fire Department of New York

Overhead and Underground Electric Emergencies and Fires: What You Need to Know

Wednesday, April 20, 10:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

Utility emergencies and fires interested me as a firefighter when I realized how much I did not know about the utility incidents to which I responded. I researched them and became friendly with a number of utility workers, who patiently answered my numerous questions. I learned that there was quite a lot of “need-to-know information” for firefighters that they were not being taught. Electricity is a topic we know the least about. 

To remedy this, I worked with my local utility, Consolidated Edison, wrote articles, made training videos, and lectured on safety at utility incidents. My goal was not to make utility experts out of firefighters. We are not and will not be the utility experts. The utility workers do that job very well. 

I hope to impart the “need-to-know” information that firefighters must have to operate safely at these incidents. If I can help a firefighter to correctly size up an incident, pick out the potential hazards, and realize what he can and should do and what he must not do, my time is being well spent.

The e-mails received and the conversations I have had after my utility response presentations with new or soon-to-be-promoted fire officers have encouraged me in my focus on utility emergencies and fires. Like me, they have had unanswered questions about these incidents. They have asked about specific incidents to which they responded and told how my articles, my book, or my presentation helped them do their job more safely. Their positive response has been extremely gratifying and encourages me to remain active as an instructor and a writer.

By Derek Rosenfeld

The second day of FDIC International 2016 pre-conference workshops opened with this high-energy presentation from Algonquin-Lake in the Hills (IL) Fire Protection District Assistant Chief Peter Van Dorpe. Van Dorpe, who is also a retired chief of training with the Chicago (IL) Fire Department (CFD), used his veteran expertise to aid students for when they make "The Intelligent Interior Attack."

Van Dorpe explains his foray into the subject by stating, "I was fortunate enough to be invited to participate in the 'Structural Stability of Engineered Lumber Under Fire Conditions' study done by UL back in 2006/07. James Dalton [CFD] and I helped write the 'Fire Service Learnings' segment of the subsequent outreach program. I have been associated with the UL and NIST groups ever since, assisting with the dissemination of the research findings and tactical recommendations."  

Here, Van Dorpe discusses the importance of the vent and positive pressure ventilation fan at a house fire:

Here, Van Dorpe introduces Underwriters Laboratories' (UL's) Mike Alt, who talks to the class and takes questions about some of UL's upcoming research regarding flow paths and ventilation:

Next, Van Dorpe talks about venting while working with the CFD and shows two incident videos as examples of outside ventilation:

He continued, "Very little true peer reviewed or science based research has been done into firefighting tactics and practices since Layman, Royer, Nelson, and others did their work in the 1950s and 1960s. The way buildings are built and the nature of the fuel loads in them has changed significantly since then. Fortunately, UL and NIST have stepped into the breach over the last decade to help build on those foundations and help prepare us for the modern fire environment."

Everything about the built environment is changing, and all of our occupied spaces, both residential and commercial, are filled with petroleum based products. It is time for the U.S. fire service to re-engage ourselves in the technical and scientific underpinnings of our profession so we are prepared for today’s and tomorrow’s firefight."

Here, Van Dorpe shows footage of what he considers to be a successful interior attack of an involved vinyl siding home:

On the UL/National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) research, he said, "The work being done by UL/NIST is having an enormous impact on post fire cause and origin investigations. If you are a fire/arson investigator, you simply must be current on this body of work. This work can also have a big impact on fire safety and public education programs. Understanding the data gathered from these experiments is critical for anyone trying to affect public safety and/or fire code legislation. The videos alone are wonderful tools for conveying the potential dangers of a modern home environment to the public. 

"Finally, anyone working on developing best practices for the U.S. fire service will find a wealth of practical information within the UL/NIST work."

In this series, Fire Engineering Senior Editor Mary Jane Dittmar looks at the things that motivated and inspired instructors to present on their topics at FDIC International 2016. Segments will be posted on a regular basis up to and through the conference, April 18-23.

Devon Wells
Chief
Hood River (OR) Fire & EMS

Rural Fire Safety: Do it the Same Way, "Differently"!
Wednesday, April 20, 1:30 p.m.-3:15 p.m.

Lookouts, Communications, Escape Routes, and Safety Zones: The four main causes of firefighter injuries and death when they are NOT considered. I take these four simple words and apply them to all-hazards emergencies. We know how to be safe in the fire service, an inherently dangerous industry. Our members get good safety training that is well received when they go through basic training and recruit schools. However, if the message never changes, complacency in training can occur, leading to complacency on the fireground.

The simple four words above, developed for the wildland fire service, are applicable to all-hazards emergencies. Firefighters and fire officers have to think summarily of only four safety topics before engaging hazard zone operation. 

With this class, I hope that firefighters will take a few moments before engaging in a hazardous activity to consider these four simple-to-remember points. With this training, fire instructors can take this “different way” of looking at safety the same way back to their agencies and train others on the principles. This will ultimately increase safety on emergency scenes--hopefully saving a life or preventing an injury

In this series, Fire Engineering Senior Editor Mary Jane Dittmar looks at the things that motivated and inspired instructors to present on their topics at FDIC International 2016. Segments will be posted on a regular basis up to and through the conference, April 18-23.

Dane Carley
Battalion Chief
Fargo (ND) Fire Department

Achieving Success Isn't an Accident: the Higher Reliability Organizing Path

Wednesday, April 20, 3:30 p.m.-5:15 p.m.

“Why do fire department members do what they do and make the decisions they do?” That’s a question I wanted to answer while studying fire service leadership. I kept encountering the concept of higher reliability organizations (HRO) and how they use their culture to increase reliability in decision making and to learn from mistakes made to prevent it from happening again. This reduces the chances for loss of life or property. The wildland fire community has identified specific ways to progress toward being an HRO for many years with positive results, so I applied that to structural fire departments. It would definitely benefit the fire service on a broad scale.

I found that structured fire departments have applied the HRO concepts in a general form; the incident command system is built on many HRO principles. I hope that by specifically identifying how structural departments can intentionally (not haphazardly) work toward higher reliability organizing and adopting HRO principles across the fire service, it will not only reduce the line-of-duty injuries and deaths but also help departments continue meeting the public’s expectations. Constant learning and adapting to changing needs as a department continues to learn is a basic HRO tenet.

Students recognize that many of the systems we already use in the fire service promote the HRO concepts, such as constantly learning for improvement. Members of the fire service, particularly those at FDIC, identify with constantly learning to improve themselves and enjoy learning about a system that formalizes and encourages this company-, department-, or service-wide.

Many students recognize that an HRO would be more conducive to younger members. It opens communication and participation from the bottom up while recognizing that a hierarchy is necessary to some extent or in certain situations.  An HRO finds a balance between encouraging communication while maintaining a functional organization. Since younger members of the department want to be involved in the direction the department is going and have input in decisions, they recognize that the HRO concepts encourage this involvement, which is beneficial to them.