Accountability

These are the first responder situational awareness and decision making issues and opportunities related to accountability.

A Walking PAR Can Improve Situational Awareness

Personnel Accountability Reports (PARs) are essential to helping commanders develop and maintain situational awareness. A quality PAR dials the commander into every crew’s size, their location and their progress. But the standard PAR has a fundamental flaw that can adversely impact the commander’s situational awareness. Here’s how…

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Situational Awareness Matters

Radio Discipline

A frequent contributing factor in firefighter casualty incidents is too much radio traffic. This can have a significant impact on first responder situational awareness because it becomes near impossible to take in, process, comprehend and remember the volumes of information being transmitted over the radio when communication is not disciplined. This article explores some of

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Ignoring the Signs of Danger

A lesson on situational awareness: The tones drop for a reported residential fire. On the way to the call, dispatch reports multiple calls, confirming a working fire. On arrival the crew sees fire blowing out the B-C corner of the single story, detached residential dwelling. The resident is standing in the front yard. A quick

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Giving L.I.P. to R.I.T.

  I would like to share the results of a series of informal polls I have been conducting over a several year period. I conducted these surveys during my Firefighter Safety: Mistakes & Best Practices programs. Roughly 7,000 first responders have participated. There is nothing scientific about this survey or the results. It was merely

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Twelve Ways to Improve Situational Awareness (SAM 244)

In this episode, a special guest presents twelve ways to improve situational awareness while working in high-risk, high consequence environments. Length: 25 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,

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Expectations can Impact Situational Awareness

Towering Inferno… Backdraft… Ladder 49… Emergency… Adam 12… Dragnet… Rescue Me… Chicago Fire… Hawaii Five O … Love them or hate them, movies and television influence perceptions and create expectations three ways: First, they influence citizen perceptions of emergency service providers and create certain performance expectations. Second, they influence first responders’ perceptions of themselves and

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The Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance – 406

  In this interview, Dr. Gasaway talks with Jeff Dill about the Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance and their work to reduce firefighter suicides.     Description   In 2010, Jeff Dill founded Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance (FBHA).  And since 2021, Jeff has served full time as the Behavioral Health Administrator for Las Vegas Fire & Rescue

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The NIOSH 5 and Leadership – The Jeff Snider Interview – 403

  In this interview, Dr. Gasaway talks with Jeff Snider about the NIOSH 5 – or the five most often cited contributing factors in Line of Duty death investigations and lessons for leader   Jeff Snider has served with the Canadian military as a Special Forces Operator (3 CDO), a Correctional Officer at a maximum-security facility,

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Conducting a LODD After Action Review: Part 2 – 402

This episode is part 2 of a 2-part interview where Dr. Gasaway talks with retired Philadelphia Deputy Chief Vince Mulray and Battalion Chief Bobby Kennedy about conducting a Line-of-Duty After Action Review following the death of Lieutenant Matthew LeTourneau on January 6, 2018. After Action Review-Line of Duty Death   On January 06, 2018, Lt.

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Conducting a LODD After Action Review: Part 1 – 401

  This episode is part 1 of a 2-part interview where Dr. Gasaway talks with retired Philadelphia Deputy Chief Vince Mulray and Battalion Chief Bobby Kennedy about conducting a Line-of-Duty After Action Review following the death of Lieutenant Matthew LeTourneau on January 6, 2018. After Action Review-Line of Duty Death   On January 06, 2018,

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