Raising the bar for Fire Service sUAS (drone) pilots
Your agency recently purchased a small unmanned aircraft system (sUAS), commonly referred to as a drone. The chief assigned Firefighter Wright as the pilot because he professed to have “Hundreds of hours…
Preparing communities for evacuation – Saving time and exposure to risks
Running a business and living in rural Australia, having just made it safely through our worst bushfire season on record, was due to the hard work, skill and dedication of our fire and emergency services. With a couple of close…
Five ways to protect firefighters from harmful particulates
Firefighters know that there are many more risks to their health than fire and heat exhaustion; the dangers of cancer-causing particulates have never been in sharper focus in firefighting than they are today. Indeed, as a sector we are becoming…
Airplane fires
From a Captain’s perspective, there are challenges flying an aircraft and managing a fire but flight crew are equipped to deal with these scenarios. In 1991, a Canadian aircraft crashed 10mins after takeoff due to an uncontrollable fire. After approximately…
Fire and Emergency Responder training during pandemic times and beyond
As a result of the pandemic, we have seen a ripple effect on the global economy affecting industries like Oil and Gas, Hospitality and supporting industries including safety training centres like ISTC. When the Covid-19 outbreak became apparent, back in…
Optimising workshops
This article discusses best practice in equipment maintenance workshops within fire stations. It addresses fundamental workshop design and how it can be used to help reduce firefighters’ exposure to carcinogens, contaminants and other infections, thereby improving safety of crews. Equipment…
Directives for firefighter wellness: Making the best job a healthier one
The hefty goal of this article is to eliminate chronic disease from the fire service – disease caused by unhealthy lifestyle behaviors. The UFF Directives for Firefighter Wellness spare you the details without sparing you the depth. If firefighters adhere…
Should firefighters think differently when it comes to drone use?
Numerous international case studies exist highlighting the innovative use of drones to aid the tackling of fires and searches for missing people. High profile incidents such as the Notre Dame cathedral blaze, in which drones were used during the fire…
Tackling the post-fire clean up and the hazards of hazardous waste
While the immediate impact of any fire will be devastating, it is the way an organisation responds afterwards which can make a real difference to future business continuity and recovery. From post-fire clean-up and decontamination, to disposal of hazardous waste…
The hazards of Oxygen, oxidising agents and organic peroxides
For the firefighter, and emergency services understanding Oxygen, its properties and those of its compounds is vital. In order for a fire to ‘take hold’ there must be Oxygen to feed the flame [reaction]. In a fire incident, smoke may…
Wise networking
There’s an old adage that says, ‘no news is good news’. But when disaster strikes, that’s not always true. Communication is key to any relationship and effective communication skills are important for any business, leadership, team or even within interpersonal…
OroraTech transforms wildfire detection and monitoring from space
This summer, a record-breaking heatwave in the Arctic Circle has caused wildfires that will leave lasting effects on biodiversity, air quality, and forest health. The European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecast (ECMWF) estimates 100 megatons of CO2 were released…
Vehicle rescue provision – a new approach to rescue
They say that having a near-death experience can change a person’s perspective and that’s what happened to me. In 2016 whilst on a humanitarian training mission in Tajikistan and travelling along the Pamir highway through the Khorog mountains the vehicle…
The evolution of PPE for the world’s female firefighters
Roger Startin, Joint Managing Director of Bristol Uniforms, looks back on the history of female firefighters across the globe and how PPE has evolved to protect them. There are many examples of heroic female firefighters throughout history, coming from all…
Use of foam for firefighting in tank farms of the oil and petrochemical industry – Part 2
Part One of this article described the typical incident scenarios at tank farm fires and presented foam as the most suitable extinguishing agent together with the firefighting equipment most commonly used. In Part Two we look at foam concentrate proportioning…
The causes of fire fatalities and serious fire injuries in Scotland
Fire fatalities in Great Britain have gradually been decreasing over the last three decades but have now plateaued. This first phase of a research study investigating fire fatalities and serious injuries in Scotland has identified the types of people most…
Operational concerns involving Electric and Hybrid Vehicles at vehicle related incidents – Part 2
The true concern with these vehicles is not extrication but fire. We already have vehicles with a significant fire load without adding in a drivetrain that adds hundreds of power cells of either NiCad, NMHiD or Lith-Ion, pounds of combustible…
Emergency services and accountability
First responders are highly trained individuals who are taught to be observant on the scene of a traumatic event or a crisis situation, but too few of them are taught to manage their own mental health. Being accountable is somewhat…
Crisis planning: Establishing a reserve corps
For months, the world has grappled with a crisis of staggering proportions, the havoc imposed by COVID-19. International travel has been restricted, global trade has ground to a veritable halt, and entire nations have enacted virtually unprecedented countermeasures ranging from…
Battery powered rescue tools
“This is much heavier than our previous equipment”, “And what do I do if I forget to charge the batteries?” “Can I work submerged with it?”, “The casing is plastic, is it stable enough?” Well, the early years weren’t easy…
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