Rich Gasaway, Author at Situational Awareness Matters!™

Gasaway Safety Solutions Presenting at the International Lineman’s Rodeo

Drone Responders Interview with Charles Werner (Episode 281)

Leave a Comment / Accountability, Attention Management, Automation, Command Location, Command Support, Communications, Crew Resource Management, Culture, Decision Making, Distractions and Interruptions, Equipment, Firefighter Situational Awareness, Information overload, Judgment, Mindfulness, Multitasking, Personnel location, Pre Arrival Lens, Progress Reports, Risk, Risk Assessment, Safety, SAMatters Radio, Shared Mental Models, Size Up, Staffing, Standard Operating Procedures/Guidelines, Stress, Task Fixation, Technology, Training / Rich Gasaway

In this episode, Fire Chief (ret.) Charles Werner discusses how drone technology can be used to enhance first responder situational awareness and improve access to critical decision making information. Length: 61 minutes Click the YouTube icon to watch the full VIDEO __________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of situational awareness and

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Selective Listening Can Be A Barrier To Situational Awareness

3 Comments / Article, Attention Management, Auditory exclusion, Distractions and Interruptions, Firefighter Situational Awareness, Human Factors, Information overload, Multitasking, Selective Listening / Rich Gasaway

Because first responders frequently operate in environments where there are multiple auditory inputs (e.g., radio traffic, face-to-face communications, ambient sounds, etc.) they are often forced to prioritize what they listen to (or don’t listen to). This can cause issues with situational awareness.

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Interview with Captain Alex Charoni on Near-miss reporting evaluations (Episode 280)

Leave a Comment / Accountability, Assumptions, Attitude, Close Call, Communications, Crew Resource Management, Culture, Decision Making, Human Behavior, Human Error, Human Factors, Judgment, Line of Duty Death, Mayday, Mayday and RIT, Mindfulness, Miscommunications, Near Miss, Risk, Risk Assessment, Routines, Safety, SAMatters Radio, Situational awareness, Situational Readiness, Standard Operating Procedures/Guidelines, Stress, Teamwork, Training / Rich Gasaway

In this episode, South King County Fire & Rescue Captain Alex Charoni discusses his passion for determining the root cause of near-miss events and the approach his department is taking to improve firefighter safety. Length: 72 minutes Click the YouTube icon to watch the full VIDEO __________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking

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Situational Awareness is a Complex Topic

Leave a Comment / Accountability, Article, Attention Management, Communications, Crew Resource Management, Firefighter Situational Awareness, Human Behavior, Safety, Staffing, Teamwork, Training / Rich Gasaway

The topic of situational awareness is growing in popularity in the fire service and this is a good thing. For decades the casualty reports have revealed that flawed situational awareness leads to poor decision making and has contributed to tragic fireground outcomes. I am honored to see many of the teachings being shared here on

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Interview with Adam Kinakin, host of The Tactical Breakdown Podcast Show – Part 2 (Episode 279)

Leave a Comment / Accountability, Assertiveness, Attitude, Cognitive Memory, Communications, Competency, Culture, Decision Making, Experience, Fear, Intuition, Judgment, Mindfulness, Miscommunications, Mission, Mission Myopia, Neuroscience, Overwhelm, Perception, Prediction, Risk, Risk Assessment, Safety, SAMatters Radio, Shared Mental Models, Situational awareness, Stress, Tacit Knowledge, Task Fixation, Task Saturation, Teamwork, Vigilance / Rich Gasaway

This episode is part 2 of a 2-part interview with the host of The Tactical Breakdown Podcast, Adam Kinakin, discussing the importance of situational awareness in high-risk decision-making scenarios Length: 52 minutes Click the YouTube icon to watch the full VIDEO __________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of situational awareness and

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Situational Awareness and Decision Making Tips for Training

1 Comment / Accountability, Article, Attention Management, Decision Making, Distractions and Interruptions, Emotions, Fatigue, Firefighter Situational Awareness, Human Behavior, Information overload, Intuition, Multitasking, Questions & Answers, Risk Assessment, Safety, Simulation, Size Up, Teamwork, Technology, Training / Rich Gasaway

I recently received an email from a SAMatters community member asking for tips to improve size-up, situational awareness and decision making while training in a flashover simulator. It was a great question (thank you Captain Scott Byers from the Tracy Fire Department)! I offered Scott a number of ideas and thought it would be good

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Interview with Adam Kinakin, host of The Tactical Breakdown Podcast Show – Part 1 (Episode 278)

Leave a Comment / Accountability, Attitude, Cognitive Memory, Communications, Competency, Culture, Decision Making, Experience, Fear, Intuition, Judgment, Mindfulness, Miscommunications, Mission, Mission Myopia, Neuroscience, Overwhelm, Perception, Prediction, Risk, Risk Assessment, Safety, SAMatters Radio, Shared Mental Models, Situational awareness, Stress, Tacit Knowledge, Task Fixation, Task Saturation, Teamwork, Vigilance / Rich Gasaway

This episode is part 1 of a 2-part interview with the host of The Tactical Breakdown Podcast, Adam Kinakin, discussing the importance of situational awareness in high-risk decision-making scenarios Length: 50 minutes Click the YouTube icon to watch the full VIDEO __________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of situational awareness and

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Situational Awareness and Accountability

Leave a Comment / Accountability, Article, Communications, Decision Making, Emotions, Human Factors, Intuition, Mental Models, Neuroscience, Prediction, Risk Assessment, Situational awareness, Size Up / Rich Gasaway

Not long ago, I was provided with the opportunity to present a webinar for Firehouse. The webinar was sponsored by Scott Safety. The program addressed the situational awareness/accountability connection. Thank you to Firehouse and Scott Safety for the opportunity to discuss this important topic.

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Comfortably Complacent (Episode 277)

Leave a Comment / Biases, Complacency, Decision Making, Expectations, Habits, Leadership, Mindfulness, Over Confident, Risk, Risk Assessment, Safety, SAMatters Radio / Rich Gasaway

This episode discusses how easy it can be to get into a comfortable rut of complacency. Length: 20 minutes Click the YouTube icon to watch the full VIDEO __________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of situational awareness and high-risk decision making to a higher level, check out the Situational Awareness

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