Fire & EMS Leader Pro The job of old firefighters is to teach young firefighters how to become old firefighters!

Behavioral research shows that by the time they begin their school years, young girls and boys already have some pretty “defined” ideas of what men and women can or cannot do, especially regarding jobs.

We know it’s a problem. It’s always been a problem. However, NFIRS information influences countless prevention campaigns, safety product development, code development, and a host of other areas so it is far past time to take NFIRS seriously. We must set complaints of data quality aside and take action.

While waiting for Mrs. Avsec to finish a dental appointment the other day, I slipped across the street to a McDonald’s restaurant in Dunbar, West Virginia to get a drink, a hot apple pie and use their free Wi-Fi to get some writing done. While looking around a bit, I saw things and thought of things that prompted these five thoughts on how what McDonald’s does could help any Fire and EMS organization to recruit and retain more people.

Many of us first became familiar with Dr. Clark and his “big thinking” approach to fire service issues when he was among the first fire service leaders on this firefighter safety issue: Firefighter “Mayday”. Dr. Clark was the first to bring awareness to the issue by asking the tough questions...

Sound rather harsh? Sound unrealistic? So does closing fire stations and laying off firefighters. So does continuing to expose firefighters to increasing levels of risk of injury or death because of negligence on the part of building occupants, developers, and builders. So does continuing to increase the fiscal burden to local taxpayers to pay for an antiquated fire protection model that is reactive rather than proactive.

State and local government agencies spend more than $10 billion a year on energy to provide public services and meet constituents' needs — putting a strain on taxpayers and budget decision makers facing shrinking budgets. Here are five tools to increase energy efficiency at a firehouse to cut energy consumption and reduce operational overhead for big savings.

Here are several tools for firefighters working the already perilous 2014 wildfire season.

In contrast, nearly 95 percent of the firefighters who have attended the class have made personal behavioral changes in their tactical approaches to fireground operations. While it’s a great feat to see individual firefighters taking note of the education, it’s disappointing that the majority of departments are not immediately taking action to protect the lives of their firefighters.

The job market, depending upon where your department is located, has become very competitive--for the employers. For volunteer departments, their very survival is dependent upon their ability to recruit new members to maintain their ability to provide services.

Follow these steps to keep your reserve fire apparatus more ready for duty and more appealing to the firefighters using them.