Author Archives: Robert Avsec, Executive Fire Officer

Battalion Chief (Ret.) Robert Avsec served with the men and women of the Chesterfield County (VA) Fire and EMS Department for 26 years. He’s now using his acquired knowledge, skills, and experiences as a freelance writer for FireRescue1.com and as the “blogger in chief” for this blog. Chief Avsec makes his home in Cross Lanes, WV. Contact him via e-mail, [email protected].

What Does Integrity Mean to You?

But over the course of my career (both of them) I've embraced this definition of integrity “Keeping your promises.” As in when you get married you promise many things (love, honor, cherish, etc.) and above all to be faithful to your spouse.

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Are you ready for Safety Stand Down 2020?

I wrote several pieces for FireRescue1.com in 2015 on this topic of roadway safety that, unfortunately, are still relevant in 2020. I encourage you and your firefighters to review these articles—and others like them—in preparation for this week’s Safety Stand Down.

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Online fire safety education: Don’t “reinvent the wheel”

By: Robert Avsec, Executive Fire Officer As the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to deepen across the U.S., one thing I’m hearing and reading much about is how fire departments are “scrambling” to get online solutions to their community outreach efforts. Perhaps scrambling is a bit hyperbolic, but the fact remains that fire safety educators and firefighters are not ...

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Don’t forget life before the COVID-19 pandemic

By: Robert Avsec, Executive Fire Officer And there was life before COVID-19 and for many fire departments that life was a struggle that life that already included: All fire departments, especially those that provide EMS in their community, are on the front-lines in the COVID-19 pandemic response. Lack of adequate funding and stress-free lending for personnel and equipment; Finding and ...

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3 Cheers for Our Public Safety Telecommunicators!

The Public Safety Telecommunicators who answer the 911 calls (911, do you have a police, fire or medical emergency?) in our communities are like the smoke detectors in our homes: we don’t think about them, but when they’re needed…they’re needed. The PST is the critical communications link between those who need help (the person who calls 911) and those who can render help (law enforcement, fire, or EMS).

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Firefighter Camps for Girls in 2020

By: Robert Avsec, Executive Fire Officer So, the other night my fire service colleague, Sue Jones, a Fire Prevention Officer with the Ottawa Fire Services, posted the following message on Facebook: “Last night, at the Fire Chief’s Commendations and Awards Ceremony, I was honoured [sic] to receive the Fire Chief’s Ambassador Award for my efforts with Camp FFIT. I think ...

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