These are the first responder situational awareness and decision making articles related to first responder safety.
This is going to be, admittedly, an uncomfortable read for some. But, nonetheless it is a conversation we need to have. I need to discuss the “F” word. No, not THAT “F” word. The “F” word that is more dreaded than the F-bomb – Fear. Many first responders enjoy discussing fear as much as they […]
Explanations for Situational Awareness Insanity – Part 5 Read More »
This article continues the series focusing on the seemingly-insane things that some first responders do while operating in high-stress, high-consequence environments. Oftentimes, the individuals trying to make sense of these behaviors are quick to judge those on the sharp of the decision by saying things like: “They weren’t paying attention?” or “How could they
Explanations for Situational Awareness Insanity – Part 4 Read More »
This series is focused on the seemingly insane things that first responders do while operating in high-stress, high-consequence environments. Oftentimes, those trying to make sense of these behaviors are quick to judge the participants, saying things like: “How could they be so stupid?” or “What were they thinking?” or perhaps the worst one of all
Explanations for Situational Awareness Insanity – Part 3 Read More »
In the episode I interview Journeyman Carpenter and Vancouver Firefighter James Johnson, sharing building construction lessons for firefighters. Length: 52 minutes click the YouTube icon to listen _____________________________________________________ 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 Matters Online
Episode 148 | James Johnson Interview on Building Construction Read More »
In this segment, we continue our discussion about the seemingly insane things that firefighters do at structure fires. I use the word insane not because the firefighters suffer from a mental affliction. Rather, I use the word insane because we keep doing the same things over and over again while expecting different results. This meets
Explanations for Situational Awareness Insanity – Part 2 Read More »
Albert Einstein is credited with saying: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results.” If you have spent time reading firefighter fatality reports, you might start to see the real-life manifestation of Einstein’s definition of insanity. In fact, I would go as far as to say we’ve got to
Explanations for Situational Awareness Insanity – Part 1 Read More »
It has often been said: “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.” [tweet this] This is true. Regardless of how fortified the individual links are, when the chain is stressed under a load, the breaking point will be the weakest link. The same can be said of situational awareness at an emergency scene.
Situational Awareness of Your Weakest Link Read More »
This is the final segment of the Recipe From Hell’s Kitchen series. In this article I want to share my personal perspectives on the catastrophic outcomes that result when the ingredients of the recipe come together. [tweet this] You may recall in the first segment I shared with you that I see this recipe being used over and
A Recipe From Hell’s Kitchen – Part 5 Read More »
In this segment of the Recipe From Hell’s Kitchen series, I share the fourth step of the recipe – complacency – and more specifically letting your safety guard down and how it can result in failure to learn, implement and practice nationally accepted best practices. As complacency sets in, an organization can lose its inertia and its
A Recipe From Hell’s Kitchen – Part 4 Read More »
In this episode, I interview my son, Cameron Gasaway, a firefighter with the Madison, Wisconsin Fire Department, about why it is so hard to speak up when you see something that’s going wrong. Length: 39 minutes click the YouTube icon to listen _____________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of
Episode 140 | Speaking up Read More »
