April 2024

Amidst the flames

Inside Yellowhead County’s gruelling battle against the 2023 wildfire blaze P.10

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By Brittani Schroeder

Revisiting Canada’s historic 2023 wildfire season

In 2023, almost everyone in our country was impacted by raging wildfires in some way. Thousands of firefighters from coast to coast battled day and night to protect Canada’s communities. I live in southwestern Ontario, and though I couldn’t see the wildfires burning through the province’s northern landscape, I could smell them each time I walked outside. My thoughts were on you—the firefighters battling those flames.

The 2023 wildfire season in Canada left its mark as the worst on record, according to data from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre. By Oct. 2023, over 18.5 million hectares had already succumbed to the flames, and the scale of this devastation had unfolded across 10 provinces and two territories. The toll on human life was tragic, with eight firefighters making the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.

The recent wildfire seasons have underscored the risks and challenges faced by those on the front lines and highlighted the need for ongoing support, improved safety measures and resources for those combating the infernos.

Earlier this year, I connected with members of Yellowhead County’s (YC) fire department in Alberta. Sitting west of Edmonton, the county is 22,238 square kilometres in size—approximately half the size of the

province of Nova Scotia. At the end of April 2023 and for two months straight, YCFD was fighting aggressive wildfires that were moving quickly through their region, with the help of Alberta Wildfire crews and many others.

“Things do, unfortunately, need to burn in the forest—it’s just the nature of things. The problem we’re running into is that humans are starting to inhabit those landscapes.”

– Chief Albert Bahri, Yellowhead County Fire Department

Yellowhead County’s fire department (YCFD) has been trained in what they call the initial attack of a wildfire. In past situations, after that initial attack, they would pass firefighting operations off to the Alberta Wildfire teams. In 2023, that simply wasn’t possible. As YC lit up in flames, so did many other regions in Alberta and British Columbia, and people and resources were stretched thin.

While I was speaking to Chief Albert Bahri and his team, he shared his views on the annual occurrence of wildfires. “Things do, unfortunately, need to burn in the forest—it’s just the nature of things. The problem we’re running into is that humans

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are starting to inhabit those landscapes. That’s where the danger comes in, and we need to make sure those residents, and their properties, are protected.”

The team at YCFD learned a lot throughout the 2023 wildfire season, among the lessons was how to perform sustained action on a wildfire for long periods of time. You can read more of YCFD’s story and their key takeaways on page 10.

As always, I invite you to pitch me your ideas, send me your latest news and accomplishments, or connect with me just to have a conversation. You can reach me at bschroeder@ annexbusinessmedia.com.

Until next time, happy reading and be well.

April 2024 Vol. 47, No. 1 cdnfirefighter.com

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Eby ‘profoundly worried’ about B.C. fire season as billions prepped for contingencies

British Columbia Premier David Eby says he is “profoundly worried” about the potentially “terrible” wildfire season in B.C., a major reason why the province has set aside $10.6 billion in contingency funds over the next three years.

Eby stated that parts of B.C., such as the Peace River, East Kootenay and Upper Fraser regions, remain severely dry, and wildfires are still burning this winter from last year’s record-breaking fire season.

“We had a record number of fires burning underneath the snow in the province, about 100 fires in January that we hadn’t seen before. We’re expecting this to be quite a terrible fire and drought season.”

Eby stated fire and drought are two factors that contribute to the need for a contingency fund for spending uncertainties.

Eby shared that the province is “standing up an army of firefighters” in preparation for this season’s wildfires, with about 1,000 people already applying to join the wildfire team this year.

The province is also said to be leasing aircraft and expanding infrastructure to allow firefighters to conduct operations such as aerial missions at night, enhancing B.C.’s capacity to fight wildfires around the clock.

“We spent a billion dollars fighting forest fires last fire season and we’re expecting this fire season to be even worse, so contingencies enable us to respond to those kinds of emergencies, as well as other issues that may arise during the year,” he said.

“Disasters that are impacting our agriculture sector, like floods and forest fires, are examples of these foreseeable but unpredictable costs that can arise during the year, which is what the contingency money is for.”

AFCA calls for unified strategy on wildfire prevention, response

The Alberta Fire Chiefs Association (AFCA) is calling on the province to disclose its wildfire preparedness strategy.

In an open letter, the association said there is a growing concern among fire chiefs regarding the lack of communication of what the government’s plan will be for the upcoming wildfire season.

18.5 million

The number of hectares wildfires burned through during the 2023 wildfire season in 10 provinces and two territories, Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre data shows.

There is also worry about the allocation of funds compared to previous years and what the plan is for the recruitment and deployment of firefighters and equipment.

“Municipal fire chiefs agree that a repeat of the approach to the 2023 fire season cannot occur,” AFCA president Fire Chief Randy Schroeder said. “Fire Chiefs are looking for assurance of an appropriate amount of funding, planning, and coordination occurring between all affected ministries responsible for keeping Albertans safe.”

In 2023, Alberta experienced an unprecedented wildfire season, with more than 2.5 million hectares of land burned. Last year’s season brought forth considerable challenges, highlighting the need for a comprehensive and proactive approach to wildfire management.

With the dry winter Alberta has experienced, the association highlighted the potential for a similar season to occur this year.

The letter noted that reliance on municipalities to financially backstop wildland fire response is not sustainable. With or without federal funding, the AFCA is concerned about the allocation of additional resources toward wildfire management. AFCA also emphasized the urgency of addressing these concerns before the onset of the wildfire season in March.

“This province needs to get serious with FireSmart. I am calling on our premier to coordinate her ministers in this immediate effort and direct them to work with stakeholders collaboratively for an effective and appropriate long-term plan,” Schroeder said.

The AFCA has met with key ministries to present specific asks including additional resources, increased training capacity, equipment, aerials and a request for the establishment of a provincial fire services advisory committee to assist in developing a dedicated provincial strategy to better manage and mitigate the risks associated with wildfire seasons.

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Front Seat

By Jason Clark

On-scene leadership: Enhancing firefighter communication for seamless operations

Irounded the corner on my 17th year as a firefighter back in February. The time, like a lot of senior firefighters will tell you, has absolutely flown by. I’ve seen a lot of changes over the years, from the trucks we’re on to the gear we wear, the way we respond to various calls and the support that we get before, during and after. We’ve also seen a fair number of new probationary firefighters join our station over the years.

I may be a part of the uncommon group that loves an activated alarm investigation. I enjoy the task of figuring out what caused the alarm. I even catch myself looking at fire alarm panels on the way into random buildings, like when I go to a movie or a hockey game. It’s weird, I know, but I think there is something we can take away and learn from every call we respond to. From finding the cause to communicating that with the crews and command, there are a lot of working parts regarding how we interact.

I’ve had to bring my on-scene communication skillset up while working with my crews over the years. Realizing that they can’t read my mind or anticipate my train of thought, I had to become more communication-oriented in the way I work with others.

So, looking at a panel that is in an alarm state in the middle of the night, showing a flow

alarm –in your head you know that you want to get to that zone, inspect the cause and report the situation back to your Command. The probationary firefighter, who is just happy to be on the inside for the first time, may not know what you’re thinking or what your next steps are. I’ve gotten to the point where I “read” it out loud and will even point with my finger to show exactly where I’m looking. “We have an alarm, and the panel is showing it’s a flow alarm on the dry sprinkler system in the rear zone of the building.” I radio this out to my team, and Command will usually bring in another crew to monitor the panel for any changes.

You could find a working fire or a system failure, like a large

Jason Clark has been a volunteer firefighter in southwestern Ontario since 2007. Having made the transition from firefighter to captain, Jason shares perspectives on roles in the fire service and riding in the front seat. Contact Jason at jaceclark71@gmail.com or @jacejclark.

You and your team need to get through that entire call on the same page with communication and tactics.

leak that caused the alarm to activate. Either way, you and your team need to get through that entire call on the same page with communication and tactics.

Replace the “alarm sounding” call with any other scenario, be it complex or somewhat straightforward. Does your communication model with your team change? For example, in a fully involved garage fire with exposures, you won’t be pointing at a fire alarm panel explaining step by step what needs to be done, but you are still going to be direct.

You may be a bit louder due to the environment, but still in control. I like to do things in steps because, as you know, your plan from the time you pull up to the time you leave the scene will change due to the nature of emergencies and the unknown. A simple direct command to your crew allows them to do what they are trained for, like bringing a line to the front of the structure. This gives you time to let sink in what is going to play out next and communicate that clearly.

This gives you time to accomplish a 360 if you are first in or, if you are supporting an already on-scene crew, the time to process your assigned role, and let your crew know where you want them and what tools to bring. Let them know and take the guesswork out of it.

Scenes are already complex with the number of resources that show up, the radio challenges and the coordination it takes to bring everything under control. Be confident with your communication, as you were selected to be a leader by your superiors.

By using your clear, calm and concise mentality, your team— including yourself—will be on the same page. When you find yourself moving up the rank structure, solid communication will benefit you and the teams that are supporting you in getting the scene under your command and control.

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Amidst the flames

Inside Yellowhead County’s gruelling battle against the 2023 wildfire blaze

By Brittani Schroeder

Amidst an unforgiving blaze that swept through Yellowhead County, Alta., in 2023, a battle unfolded as firefighters confronted one of the most challenging wildfire seasons in recent memory. There was no shortage of strategic firefighting maneuvers and lessons learned from the fires that tested those on the front lines.

The early days of the blaze

On April 29, 2023, Yellowhead County Fire Department (YCFD) started to receive reports of a spreading wildfire in the eastern region, and it was quickly approaching a residential area. Approximately two hours later, a second wildfire was reported 70 km away. This wildfire was quickly burning toward two hamlets, which caused an immediate evacuation. Shortly after, there was a third reported wildfire that was burning out of control in a rural populated area.

“When the first call came in, I responded towards the fire. It was already growing, there was a large column of smoke coming from it and I kept thinking, ‘What is it going to take to put that fire out? What equipment would we need out there?’” said Chief Albert Bahri, YCFD, who also acted as incident commander.

The fires had begun so quickly that it was hard for crews to get a handle on them. The wind quickly fanned the flames and created 1,000 km of fire line, which overwhelmed the region and the fire fighting efforts.

Yellowhead County is divided into two zones: a green zone and a white zone. In the green zone, Alberta Forestry is responsible for the wildland firefighting and YCFD takes care of structural and asset protection. In the white zone, YCFD does everything. With the help of the Emergency Coordination Centre (ECC), fire

crews needed to quickly establish a course of action.

YCFD are structural firefighters, who typically only assist with the initial attack of wildland fires before Alberta Forestry takes over the scene. “There were a lot of things we had to learn on the fly, but all the different crews banded together to fight this fire,” said Capt. Corinne Grant, operations section chief.

Even in the early days of the fight, Bahri shared that he felt like there was always a shortage of people and resources. YCFD only has 13 full-time firefighters and just over 80 volunteer firefighters. With the large number of wildfires active in the province, fire fighting crews and accessible provincial resources became very limited. Combining this with the lack of spring rain and the strong winds, the fires ran out of control.

The logistics behind the fire fighting

Putting the size of the County into perspective, Bahri shared that Yellowhead County is 22,238 square kilometres in size. The entire province of Nova Scotia is 55,284 square kilometres. “Our fires covered over 307,000 hectares, equal to 3,070 square kilometres, which is 3.9 times the size of New York City,” he said. Multiple fires had combined and raged on for almost 60 days.

Due to the size of the county—the third largest in Alberta—it took considerable time to get resources

Wildfire in Yellowhead County, April 30, 2023.

from one site to the next. “With five major fires threatening separate areas, our resources were sometimes separated by an hour’s travel time. We needed to stay coordinated; communication was key to making sure everything got to where it was needed,” said Grant.

YCFD was not in this fight alone—they received support from Alberta Wildfire and BC Wildfire, along with many municipal and private firefighters from across the province. Firefighters who were experts in operations, wildfire mapping and activity assessment, and public information also came to help from the United States, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

Personnel from several Alberta Emergency Disaster agencies, the Alberta Sheriffs Agency, the RCMP, Canada Task Force 2 and the North Central Regional Emergency Management team also provided support.

A unified command was created to coordinate evacuation efforts. A wildfire in the southern region of YC grew larger than the City of Regina in less than 24 hours and was able to travel over 20 km in five hours, making the evacuation of residents essential. Complicating these efforts was the closure of Highway 16, a major corridor running from Saskatchewan through Alberta into British Columbia, and the CN Rail service. “How can you evacuate people when the major travel arteries are closed? How can you get additional resources? We worked hard to get things under control enough to open those routes again,” said Bahri.

Another challenge faced was the access to hotels, grocery stores and gas stations. “Because everyone has left, how do we get food to feed our personnel? How do we get fuel to work our equipment? Where do we get new hoses, coveralls and fittings?” asked Capt. Heidi van der Schoot, logistics section chief. “We were lucky when the evacuated residents gave us access to their stores and supplies so that we could support our crews.”

When the fire crews needed additional support, van der Schoot put out requests right away. “When we couldn’t get the extra resources, like water pumps, it wasn’t because we weren’t asking for them—it’s because they weren’t available. Every available resource was being utilized somewhere else because the western half of Canada lit up all at the same time,” said Bahri.

Protecting the people

For the first few weeks, there was no downtime for members of YCFD. They were doing 14-hour days because their community was burning down.

“Many people wanted to keep going, myself included. I didn’t want to relinquish the fight,” said Bahri.

Lt. Dylan Doane found going home hard. “Our homes were smoke-filled, so you didn’t want to stay there, and it felt wrong to do anything else besides fire fighting.”

“It’s hard to take days off because we’re the ones with the knowledge of the area and what’s going on. It’s difficult to hand that off to someone else and just go home for a day,” said Grant. “Even though we could see the fire raging in the distance, it was 2 a.m. and our crew had to go home to get some rest. We needed them back in the fight in the morning, so I wanted to give them time to regroup. They didn’t want to leave, but I needed to protect my people.”

The proper training

YCFD had to increase their knowledge level, as a department, on how to perform sustained action on a wildfire for long periods as, typically, YCFD only does the initial attack.

“Nothing was stopping that fire.”

– Chief Albert Bahri

“We had some amazing crews coming in from other municipalities as well as the wildfire teams, and we worked side-by-side with them. We taught them things, they taught us things, and everyone learned throughout this situation. We leveraged the people that came in as much as we could,” said Grant.

During any downtime, YCFD took advantage and organized special training days. An example of a training day included learning from a structure protection specialist from British Columbia.

“These training days gave us simple tricks to save time and be more efficient in our work. Anything that could

help us get through a fire quicker,” said Doane.

Bahri extends his gratitude to all the teams that worked together on this fire. “To see all the different agencies come in, who have never worked together before, and work so well as one team was hugely beneficial. Kudos goes out to the Forestry team, too. We applied their mentorship to what we were doing, and they in turn applied our mentorship on the structural protection side of things. It was incredible,” he said.

Switching gears

The fight against the wildfires continued for almost eight weeks until some much-needed rain arrived on June 19. Soon another disaster struck: serious flooding, late-spring snowstorms and the threat of tornadoes, which resulted in more evacuations and inaccessible areas due to damaged roads and bridges.

Fire fighting efforts were severely hindered due to the wet, muddy conditions. Fire guards and other wildfire-fighting methods were washed away.

“Literally overnight, the fireground we were just battling on was suddenly underwater. Firefighters were now doing water rescue, and they pivoted like there was no question about it,” said Bahri.

Lessons learned

After the worst was over and operations returned to a state of normalcy, YCFD knew they needed to actively prepare for the next emergency. This included looking at available resources and the accurate timelines for acquiring them. “The biggest lesson learned was to not wait; make those calls for more resources immediately. Worst case, you don’t use it and you can always send it back,” said Bahri. He recalled that in YCFD’s existence, they had never dealt with anything of this scale before.

In terms of resources, Grant said that nothing was unreasonable. “You might think a resource is too excessive on a normal day, but when you’re fighting something as big as these wildland fires, nothing is outside the scope of possibilities.”

Looking back at spring 2023, from the fires to the floods and the snowstorm, Bahri credits a lot of YC’s success to the Municipal Emergency plan approved by Council that had been in place for such an occasion. “These plans are reviewed regularly, and we train for any outcome. Our plan worked, people showed up in droves to help and there were no major injuries aside from a firefighter’s hand needing stitches. Our teams had confidence in our emergency plan, and we made informed decisions because of it. Is there more training we can do? Yes. But we were very successful all the same.”

Resiliency for 2024

If there is ever a choice between stopping a raging wildfire or having some free time, the firefighters of YCFD will always serve their community first.

“They come first. It’s what we’re here to do: protect them,” said Doane.

“It’s the reason we’re firefighters – we want to help. It was even easier once our families were evacuated because then we didn’t have to worry about spending all our time on the front lines,” said Grant.

“Resiliency is a big word in the fire service, along with dedication. Whether you’re a career or volunteer firefighter, it doesn’t matter—you’re dedicated to serving your community,” said Bahri. “We came together as a community. We ate, slept and fought together. Throughout the emergency, we had at least 750 firefighters come through here to help. It was like a community within a community event.”

As YCFD looks forward to the possibilities of the 2024 wildfire season, they are staying positive. While the County didn’t get snow until the end of Dec. 2023, they see it as no predictor for what the spring weather will be like. “The weather is going to do what the weather does, and we will deal with it. We will be prepared no matter what,” said Grant.

Bahri also sees no reason to scare YC residents. Since last year’s fires, community members have been hyper-vigilant – when they see any smoke in the air, YCFD is immediately called to check it out. “Are we concerned? Absolutely. Do we have plans in place? Absolutely. What we can’t predict, we have to prepare for.”

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From firefighter to reality game show finalist

In autumn 2023, a fresh installment of a reality TV series made its debut: The Traitors Canada. This unique game featured chosen ‘traitors’ eliminating fellow contestants, while the ‘faithful’ participants attempted to uncover the saboteurs. Among the faithful was Leroy Fontaine, a firefighter from Halifax, N.S.

When did you decide you wanted to be a firefighter?

Throughout my youth, I played football, and I learned what it meant to work with and give back to the community. Eventually, I was faced with a choice of what I wanted to do with my life. I decided that I wanted to serve my community, and fire fighting fit the bill perfectly.

Ten years ago, I went to Lakeland College and obtained an Emergency Services Technologist Diploma, which covered my training for being a firefighter and a primary care paramedic.

My first job out of college was working as a firefighter/paramedic for Shell Canada in Fort McMurray, working at the oilfield. Four years later, I moved to Halifax where my role was

more in the educational side of things. I was an instructor and technical support specialist focusing on confined space rescue, technical rescue and the like. After a year there, I made the switch to Halifax Regional Fire Emergency. This was the best transition of my life; I truly love working there.

Can you tell us a bit about the show?

Before The Traitors Canada, I had been on a reality show before, and I think that opened the doors for my recruitment for this show. When I was approached, initially I didn’t know I’d say yes. I didn’t think it was my cup of tea, but I told myself not to pass on the

opportunity.

In the show, 20 contestants live in a manor near Montreal, Que., all with the hopes of winning a $100,000 prize. A small group of contestants become the traitors and must work as a team to eliminate the other contestants to win the money. The faithfuls must discover who the traitors are and banish them to win the prize. If even one traitor remains at the end, the full prize pot would be awarded to them.

I thought I was going to be picked as a traitor, and I honestly wanted that because I wanted to be in control of the outcome. Maybe that’s just the firefighter in me, hoping to control the situation. When I wasn’t select-

ed as a traitor, though, it was the biggest relief.

What firefighter skills transferred into the show?

I opened up right away to my fellow contestants and told them the truth. I said who I was and what I did for a living because—and I said this in my audition tape—who doesn’t trust a firefighter?

I think I initially won some people over, but I wanted to gain everyone’s trust. So much relationship-building happened that wasn’t seen in the aired show. Communication was almost non-stop – travelling to and from the missions, mingling in the manor and time at the ‘round table’ where we would eliminate players.

During the missions, I found my firefighter background truly helped me out because of how fitness-focused they were. Some of those missions would drain the other contestants, and they would start making mistakes. As a firefighter, we don’t have room for mistakes. Even if we’re tired, we still need to be calculated and critical thinkers. Being able to make sound decisions when my fellow castmates were too tired to do so was very beneficial for my game.

One mission stands out for me. In a barrel mission, we needed to push large wooden barrels through a forest and up large hills. These barrels represented different amounts of

Leroy Fontaine’s journey to the top three By Brittani Schroeder

money. I put in a lot of work, pushing the biggest barrels, but I was also encouraging my team members, as I would on the fire ground. We worked as a collective, but at one point I had to take control and tell my team to drop the barrels that were low denominations to give priority to the bigger denomination barrels. It was nice to be in that position but also do it in a way that was respectful of everyone and their efforts.

There was a point, however, when my name started coming up in conversations about who could be a traitor. Everyone started to recognize how well I was doing in my social game and during the missions, and they started questioning how I could remain so calm throughout it all. But again, that just ties back to my career as a firefighter and seeing tense, critical situations regularly. People thought I’d been around for a little too long, but I was never voted out. Not until there were only three

contestants left and the doubts of my faithfulness won. A traitor went home with the prize money.

Do you have any words of advice for firefighters who may have the same opportunity in the future?

As firefighters, we always want to represent our team and community well.

In a show like this, where there’s a game focused on deceit and misleading people, representing myself properly could’ve been hard. I knew I’d only be happy, on the show and afterwards, if I represented my values well and played the game as close to my true values as I could: integrity, respect and honesty.

Knowing that I went in as Leroy Fontaine, the firefighter, the Indigenous family man, and came out the same way is a win in itself. I almost won it all—I was just one vote away.

So, my advice for anyone who is approached to do something similar is to make sure you’re prepared to deal with the after-effects of the show, whether it’s battling with yourself, your core values and what you represent, or the outside community that’s going to question you about it. So, represent yourself well but play the game.

Do you have any final thoughts?

Everything I do is about being a role model and representing everyone. I have that responsibility as an Indigenous man, as a firefighter, as a father and friend. I am involved in the community in every way, and I wanted to go into that show and represent them all. I wanted to win it for them.

I’ve received a lot of messages since the show aired, telling me I made people proud. I think my mission was accomplished.

Wild fire

How technology and innovation are changing wildfire response

By Laura Aiken

Who doesn’t love a record-breaker?

Like basketball star LeBron James, who recently became the first NBA player to hit 40,000 points. However, we could do without the records being broken by wildfires and climate. In Canada, about 2.5 million hectares burn during an average wildfire season, but 18.5 million were scorched in 2023. From June 1 to 25, more land was lit up in Quebec than the cumulative hectares burned over the last 20 years. Canada also hit a milestone by having its warmest May to July in over 80 years, “breaking previous national temperature records by 0.8°C,” reported the federal government.

Quebec lost nearly 4.5 million hectares. British Columbia set records with its 2.84 million hectares lost. Ontario’s 441,000 hectares nearly tripled the 10-year average. Alberta lost over two million hectares and declared a state of emergency by May 6. Nova Scotia battled the burning of over 25,000 hectares. The Northwest Territories experienced their worst season on record, one that forced almost 70 per cent of their population to evacuate over the summer. All across Canada, wildfires reached for the record-breaking stars. But these are numbers. The emotional toll of fire fighting, evacuations, lives disrupted and tragically fallen wildland firefighters is unquantifiable.

Resources and the role of tech

Before examining how technology is impacting the frontlines and forecasting, let’s

highlight what kind of people-power was pulled in for 2023. In Quebec, The Society for the Protection of Forests against Fire tallied 2,360 additional bodies battling the fires in June and July; exemplifying globalization in action: 343 from France, 500 from the U.S., 140 from Portugal, 140 from South Korea, 100 from Spain and a boosted domestic effort of about 1,000 troops from the Canadian Armed Forces and 140 from other agencies.

The Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre Inc. (CIFFC) spent 120 consecutive days at the highest National Preparedness Level, NPL5, reported the International Association of Wildland Fire, which summarized Canada’s partnerships beyond the U.S, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Mexico and Costa Rica agreements that were in place before 2023. In summer 2023, Natural Resources Canada negotiated an arrangement with Portugal and the CIFFC created interim

agreements with Chile, France, Spain, South Korea and Brazil.

People-power is the most vital resource on the wildfire front. Millions are being poured into technology, but innovation is also to be seen in boots on the ground.

Brian Hutchinson, who at the time of this interview was fire chief for the District of North Vancouver Fire Rescue Services but moved on March 1 to start a new position with B.C. Wildfire Service as the superintendent of provincial operations – fire services, shared an observation on task forces happening in his province.

“One of the things that I’ve noticed is that some regions in the province have started to pre-identify and pre-assemble response-based task forces, in some of the areas where you have a large number of communities spread out over a wide area.”

This means that if there is an incident in the region, there is a pre-identified task force comprised of the estimated need for

The standards of a Type 3 in a redesigned Type 6 form – multipurpose WUI vehicles like the Wildland 3 are attracting attention for their hybrid versatility.

Starfield LION Flame Fighter™ Bunker Gear

engines and tenders that saves calling around to the neighbouring departments to see what’s available.

“I think we’re going to see more of that,” said Hutchinson. “That’s a model that’s used throughout California in terms of how they call up and deploy resources. When there’s a pre-assembled task force, it’s likely they know each other and train together, a huge operational benefit and a great resource for B.C. Wildfire when they are reaching out. Fortunately, people are aided by some pretty cool innovations.”

One such innovation comes in the form of new engines that address the wildland urban interface. Hutchinson shared his sentiments on the unique capabilities of Safetek Profire’s Wildland 3, which North Vancouver acquired. This engine deviates from the typical Type 3 engine that is more similar in size to a Type 1. During his tenure as the fire chief in North Vancou-

ver, Hutchinson was looking for a Type 3 capacity—one that holds a large volume of water for organic material or things like a car or home that catches fire when the wildfire creeps. North Vancouver’s terroir involves a lot of steep terrain and narrow, windy roads that limit maneuverability.

The Wildland 3 caught his eye as a perfect hybrid of capacities by meeting all the standards of a traditional Type 3 engine while offering the maneuverability and lightness that a traditional Type 6 brings.

The hybrid nature of the Wildland 3 means it can get to structures in difficult-to-reach terrain and be deployed as a first-in unit for a structure fire, as it has both the SCBA and a large tank of water to get fire fighting operations underway. A Type 1 engine can be brought in as backup.

BME Fire Trucks, represented in Canada by Commercial Emergency Equipment, offers a WUI engine in the Bighorn, whose

redesign will be on display at FDIC. Matt Stocker, national sales manager for BME, shared details. The engine offers versatility as both a structural and wildland response vehicle with a full complement of ladders, a 1000 to 1500 GPM mid-ship pump, 750 G tank with a 1000 G tank coming soon, options for a single or two stage pump, deck gun or front bumper monitor options, foam system, 4-wheel drive, and aluminum body with tubular construction.

Rosenbauer has a WUI pumper on the market in the Timberwolf that meets the requirements of a Type 1 and a Type 3 with a 1000 GPM multi-stage pump.

Fire engine innovations are rising to meet demands for versatility, and pump technology is evolving to address the need to tap and move large amounts of water. Hutchinson noticed the focus on moving mass water picking up in 2021 in B.C. with the recognition of how water supply could

be negatively impacted via wildland or post-disaster settings. The North Vancouver environment is tidal, so it is not conducive to traditional drafting techniques that involve lowering drafting hoses in to pump water out. The North Vancouver department invested in two HydroSub units from Hytrans Systems. These units are powerful mobile pump systems to harness the supply of water in rivers, lakes and oceans. The hydraulically driven submersible pump is designed to provide quick access to open water, even if it’s over a kilometre away, without losing steam as it pumps over long distances.

Gord Parker, structure protection specialist with B.C. Wildfire Service, observed that these systems are becoming a key component of response in light of the recognition that the domestic water system is simply not robust enough. “We want to keep things foolproof,” he said.

The provincial system is two Trident pump systems, said Parker, each moving about 750 gallons a minute with the power to go around a mile from Point A to Point B.

“Large volume is also about ground storage tanks,” said Parker. “We are constantly looking at ways of moving and storing water.” Tanks systems are becoming more prominent.

Hutchinson said he has seen structure protection units grow in prominence for urban departments, with North Vancouver and neighbouring departments becoming equipped with them. These are trailers roughly 20 feet long and equipped with enough sprinklers, pumps and bladders to do sprinkler protection for about 35 homes as a defence mechanism when you are predicting the fire is going to impact the community. Set up the sprinklers about a half hour or hour before the fire is expected to begin its impact. This creates a humidity bubble, and when the fire in the trees or moving forward quickly pushes against this humidity bubble, the humidity bubble will push the fire to the ground where it’s then easier to manage, as well as casting fewer embers, Hutchinson explained.

The foreseeable frontier in wildfire operations also includes intelligence tech. When queried as to what else he sees on the horizon, Parker noted drones for tracking and unmanned aerial autonomous vehicles that can drop retardants. Early detection sensors, like those made by the German company Dryad Networks, were trialled by Cal Fire last year. Dryad developed a solar-powered gas sensor designed to “smell” a fire before it erupts. These ultra-early detection systems use long-range wide area networks to communicate with a satellite and the 4G LTE connection built into it. It’s all impressive gadgetry, but no one innovation or technique saves the day. The continued development of the FireSmart program in Canada is critical to wildfire preparedness. Prescriptive and Indigenous cultural burning are both practices Parker thought we’d see more of.

No one piece of technology or innovation will work magic on our new reality of hotter, faster and frequent wildfires, which seem likely to continue. The magic is in the fire service that works together to harness them.

Recipe rescue

By Patrick Mathieu

Patrick Mathieu is a Captain Training Officer with Waterloo Fire Rescue in Ontario. He has appeared on Food Networks Chopped Canada and is the author of The FireHouse Chef Cookbook. Please email him at thefirehouse_chef@yahoo. ca and follow him on Instagram @stationhouse_

Smart supermarket swaps: Upgrade your cooking

Ioften find myself at a crossroads when visiting the supermarket these days, trying to find the fine balance between keeping things easy and the soaring food costs. In a super busy household and firehouse, my goal is to make the best-tasting food in the least amount of time possible, without sacrificing quality—if there’s a convenient supermarket product that’s going to help me get there, all the better.

Here is my list of common supermarket ingredients that you should avoid putting in your shopping cart, along with suggestions on what to look for instead.

“Fresh” shrimp: The vast majority of “fresh” shrimp seen at the supermarket are frozen shrimp that have been thawed out on-site—the same frozen shrimp they sell you by the bag. Once thawed, shrimp have a very limited shelf life. Instead, buy bags of IQF (Individually Quick Frozen) shrimp. Kept in their bags in the freezer, they’ll last for months, and they take only 10 to 15 minutes to thaw under cold water.

Full-sodium broth or stock: Full-sodium broth may taste better straight out of the box or can than its low-sodium counterpart but it’s less versatile. Many soup, stew and sauce recipes call for allowing stock to be reduced to concentrate its flavour. Instead, simply buy the low-sodium stock option of your favourite brand.

Beef broth: Canned or boxed beef broth contains almost no beef at all, instead relying on yeast extracts to provide it with a savoury aroma and flavour. Instead, in most recipes boxed chicken broth will provide far better flavour than boxed beef broth, even for traditionally beef brothbased dishes like beef stew or onion soup. This is because most boxed or canned chicken broth contains double the amount of protein to liquid as in beef broth.

Cooking wine: Cooking wine has salt added to it, which means that, like full-so -

dium broth or stock, it’s impossible to reduce without making your food overly salty. Instead, buy regular inexpensive wine. You don’t need fancy wine to cook with—anything dry with no overtly off flavours will do.

Salad dressing: Most pre-made salad dressings are designed to be shelf-stable, which means that they lack the freshness of a homemade dressing. Moreover, when buying pre-bottled dressing, you’re paying premium prices for low-quality oils and vinegars. I suggest making your salad dressings fresh. The flavour you’ll get out of high-quality olive oil, good vinegar, and fresh citrus juice and aromatics will be brighter and fresher than anything in a bottle, and cheaper as well.

Powdered sauce/spice packs: We love a good hollandaise in the firehouse. Real hollandaise is thought of as being difficult to make, which makes instant hollandaise an attractive option. However, instant hollandaise—made with powdered butterfat, starches, stabilizers and artificial flavourings—is nothing like the real thing. Despite its reputation, real hollandaise is easy to make using a foolproof two-minute method (see my recipe).

Pre-grated cheese: Pre-grated cheese comes coated with cornstarch or some other powder intended to prevent it from clumping. However, this anti-clumping powder can affect the way the cheese melts or incorporates into sauces. Plus, pre-grated cheese generally costs more than its ungrated counterparts. Buying blocks of cheese and grating them yourself can save you money, will give you more control over quality, and will also ensure that recipes come out the way they were intended to.

Frozen hamburger patties: With rare exceptions, frozen burger patties are made from scraps of beef that could have come from anywhere on the carcass or from any number of carcasses, ground extremely

Smoked salmon eggs benny with firefighter-proof dill hollandaise

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill fronds

4 English muffins

8 slices smoked salmon

4 large eggs, poached with this method

Sliced scallions, to garnish

Capers, to garnish

Combine hollandaise with 2 teaspoons dill. Toast the English muffins and divide between 4 plates, top each English muffin with 2 slices smoked salmon, then a poached egg. Spoon dill hollandaise over each egg, garnish with extra dill and sliced scallions if desired and serve immediately.

Firefighter-proof hollandaise

INGREDIENTS

2 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon water

1 teaspoon lemon juice from 1 lemon Kosher salt

1 stick unsalted butter

Pinch cayenne pepper or hot sauce, optional

In a cup just wide enough to fit the head of an immersion blender, combine egg yolks, water, lemon juice and a pinch of salt. In a small saucepan, melt butter over high heat, swirling constantly, until foaming subsides. Transfer butter to a 1-cup liquid measuring cup. Place the head of the immersion blender into the bottom of the cup and turn it on. With the blender constantly running, slowly pour hot butter into the measuring cup in a thin stream. It should emulsify with egg yolk and lemon juice. If needed, tilt the blender head up slightly to help the emulsification process. Continue pouring until all butter is added. The sauce should be creamy and thick enough to coat a spoon but still flow off of it. If it is too thick, whisk in a small amount of warm water, 1 tablespoon (15ml) at a time, to thin it out to the desired consistency. Season to taste with salt and a pinch of cayenne pepper or hot sauce if desired. Serve immediately, or transfer to a small, lidded pot and keep in a warm place for up to 1 hour before serving. Hollandaise cannot be cooled and reheated.

PHOTO: PATRICK MATHIEU

fine and packed very tight. You’re losing the battle for good burger texture and flavour before you’ve even started to cook. If you want a great burger, you need to start with good beef. For the best burgers, buy whole cuts of meat and ask the butcher to grind them for you. That way, you have full control over the flavour and texture.

Fresh vegetables in sealed plastic bags: Without being able to touch and examine your produce, it’s difficult to gauge its quality. The brussels sprouts or cauliflower that look okay through the plastic window may reveal blemishes on closer inspection. Buy your vegetables from the loose-produce displays, where you can pick and choose what you’re paying for.

Out-of-season tomatoes: Most tomatoes are picked while still green and firm to be able to withstand the rigours of cross-country travel in the back of a produce truck. Some vegetables and fruits will ripen just fine after being picked. Not tomatoes. While picked green tomatoes will eventually turn red, they will not develop flavour. Tomatoes are best enjoyed seasonally—at the end of the summer and into the fall— from a local grower who picks them when they’re fully ripened on the vine. If you must buy tomatoes during the off-season, choose smaller varieties, like cherry, grape, or plum (Roma) tomatoes, which are generally picked riper. For cooked applications like sauces and stews, canned peeled whole tomatoes will invariably be better than fresh tomatoes because they’re picked fully ripe before canning or jarring.

Jarred garlic: The chemicals that give garlic its characteristic aroma and pungency are created and released as soon as plant cells are ruptured through cutting or crushing. The thing is, the sweet, aromatic compounds tend to disappear faster than the sulphurous, overly pungent compounds. Pre-chopped or pre-crushed garlic has all the bad qualities of garlic and none of the good. Instead, buy fresh garlic in whole heads. Peeling and chopping or crushing individual cloves is very easy and, when left in its papery skin and stored in a cool, dark place, a head of garlic will last

for weeks.

Dried delicate leafy herbs: Some succulent herbs that grow in particularly dry, hardy climates—like rosemary, bay leaves or oregano—will retain plenty of flavor even when dried. Delicate leafy herbs— like parsley, basil, tarragon, cilantro or

chives—have much more volatile aromatic compounds; once dried, they lose any quality that makes them worth cooking with. If you can, spring for fresh herbs. Stored upright in a sealed jar with an inch of water, they’ll last for weeks. For longer storage, chop and freeze them.

Technical Response

By Chad Roberts

Chad Roberts is an Acting Captain on a Heavy Rescue in Oakville, Ont. He is a member of the Oakville Extrication Team and Vice President of the North American Vehicle Rescue Association. Contact Chad at chadroberts12@gmail.com.

From ladders to ropes: Demystifying tech rescue training angles

When talking about tech rescue in the fire service, you don’t have to look far to find a fire department that is promising a high level of technical response delivery. What is even more likely to be seen is a lot of those same departments struggling to meet those expectations or even planning for the proper training for their members to be able to provide these services. However, to sit back and criticize these departments and their training delivery plan will only hurt us as the members on the front line. Our customers’ safety—and the safety of the members serving alongside us—should always be at the forefront of our minds when it comes to our motivation to be proficient at these skills.

But how can we keep up? How is it possible to stay current and proficient in all of these rescue disciplines? The equipment, the safety and the procedures are all very daunting when looking from afar. Can there be a way to make it easier to understand? Not everyone is into the job like some of the experts in these fields and there is nothing wrong with that. What I’m going to try to do going forward with this column is to find similarities to close these training gaps. Where I see proficiency and the ability to perform all tech rescue disciplines is in our talent of simplifying and finding commonalities in each skill set.

First, let’s consider the angle—or in the easiest form, the triangle. This shape was introduced to us in our years of infancy and if you look at the fire service, and more specifically at tech rescue, the triangle and the angle at which it presents itself can help us identify many different advantages and disadvantages. Let’s look at one of the earliest examples we see in our early fire service careers: the ladder.

When placing a ladder, we all have been

Angles are everywhere in the fire service, from the simplest of forms to the tech rescue fields.

taught the 75-degree angle rule or some variation that gets us to that same angle. But what is the reasoning behind that specific angle? When we look closer, we must understand that as we place weight on the ladder by climbing or working off it, that same weight is being transferred to the ladder and down to the butt spurs. As that degree of angle becomes less – 60, 55, 50 degrees – that same weight being applied to the butt spurs is increasing, ultimately making a much better case for the ladder to slip out and/or fall.

A similar example could include a heavy lifting application. Consider an underride scenario where we are required to lift and stabilize a large vehicle that is on top of a smaller vehicle. While the weight we have

calculated is a set amount, the placement of our lifting and stabilizing struts can tell another story. In this scenario, we may be supporting a load of 20,000 lbs. By placing the struts at a 75-degree angle, the actual weight being transferred to the strut and down to its base plate is 5,600 lbs. If the same strut angle is decreased to 60 degrees, that weight transfer becomes 11,600 lbs, and 20,000 lbs at 45 degrees. At these calculations, we must seriously consider the weight ratings of our straps or chains as failure will be likely.

Lastly, we’ll apply the theory of angles to a rope rescue. When I think of angles and try to make it relatable to rope rescue, while keeping it to the most basic but important part of our system, I recognize that we need to look at the anchor(s) – specifically multi-point anchors and re-directions. The jurisdiction I work in brings us to many calls that involve patients being stuck down river/cliff embankments,

Placing struts at different angles can act as force multipliers and must be identified.

take on 100 per cent, or in this case 600 lb each. Therefore, keeping the anchor points under 90 degrees will ultimately cause less stress on our multiple anchors.

The converse is true for redirects. When selecting redirects in our systems, we must remember that the angle at which the rope enters and exits the pulley at the redirect anchor should be greater than 90 degrees to cause less stress on the object you’ve chosen. While somewhat confusing, if the angle is 90 degrees it will be taking on one and a half times the total load and at 180 degrees it will be taking on two times the load. Therefore, when choosing our redirect anchors, we must utilize angles to understand the true forces we are creating.

many of which are in wooded areas that require us to get creative with our anchor points. A better understanding of how to apply angle theories allows us to create safe anchors using multiple smaller trees

and objects, or even those redirect anchors that we must utilize to create a better hauling field. When using multiple points to create one anchor for a 600 lb load, the resulting angle where they meet (connection point, anchor plate) should ideally never be greater than 90 degrees as this will put 70 per cent of the load, or 420 lb, on each anchor. At 120 degrees, which is our critical maximum, each anchor will

The main takeaway when we are using angles is similar in many applications: Any time weight is applied and/or transferred from one point to another, the closer that we can keep that point-to-point transfer straight (or plumb), the better off we generally are. Any time we add angles we change how that same weight is magnified or retracted. Angles are everywhere in the fire service, from the simplest of forms to the tech rescue fields. Go out and train with these theories, draw them up on the whiteboard and truly get an appreciation for how angles can help us simplify our most complicated operations.

Setting multi-point anchors at angles greater than 90 degrees can add considerable weight to our anchor points.

Conversely, setting deviations or redirects at angles less than 90 degrees can place more force on our redirect than our original anchor points.

Psychological PPE

By James Rychard

In addition to being a firefighter and R2MR instructor from the city of Burlington, Ont., James Rychard is an advocate for mental and behavioural health in the fire service, sitting on multiple association committees. He can be reached at jaymzr007@hotmail.com.

Human factors and high-stakes decisions

Decision-making in the fire service is critical for both emergency and non-emergency situations. We applaud leaders who make sound decisions because the outcomes are usually positive and successful. When decisions are not ideal, the outcomes can be negative with impactful consequences. Those consequences can have residual effects, affecting others directly and indirectly.

Human factors and human performance are new concepts for the fire service. Human factors are an area of cognitive and industrial psychology that focuses on the reduction of human error. It increases productivity and enhances safety and comfort; errors are human. Human performance is an area of performance psychology that examines psychological factors which influence optimal human performance. It addresses improvements in performance for individuals, teams and organizations. Merging the two concepts creates a hybrid for fire service decision-making: merging psychology with performance.

“Fallibility is a part of the human condition. Errors cannot be eradicated, but they can be anticipated and managed accordingly,” stated University of Manchester psychology professor James Reason. He divides error into three types: slips, lapses and mistakes. Slips

are something that interrupts the execution of an idea, and you do the wrong thing. Lapses are moments of forgetfulness; you intend to do something and then you forget to do it. Mistakes occur when you make the wrong decision due to a lack of relevant or correct information. According to Reason, “these can [even] happen to the most experienced and welltrained.” For the fire service, that can mean fire service leaders who, in general, are respected as such.

There is an abundance of historical incidents, accidents and even major disasters that when accessed through a human factors lens are the result of five to seven contributing factors. It’s these factors which have served as precursors, relative or unrelative to the situation.

Topics of human performance focus on habits that build and maintain an ideal perform-

ance state. They are the ones necessary to improve human performance, personally and professionally. Maximizing energy, better managing stressors (personal and professional), and productivity under stress help improve decision-making. Captured previously in my article “Mental Performance Coaching”¹, happier, healthier and more focused leaders perform better at work and have happier and healthier lives. When viewed through an athletic lens, fire service leaders can be regarded as corporate athletes.

For the fire service, to understand the bigger picture of decision-making, it’s advantageous to look at the pieces of the puzzle individually; identifying events or factors that contributed to those well-intentioned poor decisions. Given that the fire service learns best from case studies and historical events, studying

other industry disasters can be valuable for improving the fire service. To illustrate the power of decisions we need to take a journey back to 1977. On March 27, off the island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands, two jumbo jet airliners collided on a runway that resulted in 583 deaths. But what led to this?

First, after being re-routed from their destination airport, two Boeing 747s, KLM Flight 4805 and Pan Am Flight 1736, along with other air traffic were diverted to a neighbouring airport. This airport, a small regional one, did not have the infrastructure to manage the surge of aircraft and passengers.

Second, known for being the face of KLM, Captain Jacob Veldhuyzen Van Zanten was no ordinary pilot. He was senior and seldom flew; he spent his time in flight simulators teaching young pilots. All Dutch pilots, including Van Zanten, were operating under the restrictions of newly instituted government mandates which placed strict provisions on a pilot’s daily logged flying time. Van Zanten stated, if a pilot challenged those provisions “You get hung out to dry, you lose your licence, you lose your career, you lose everything.” Operating from an exhaustive state, Van Zanten knew he had a limited time window to get his passengers back to Holland. Compounding his exhaustion, Van Zanten felt the pressure of the government’s strict policies, which busied his mind further.

Third, anticipating the potential backlog of aircraft needing fuel at the pumps, Van Zanten

took on an unprecedented amount; not the usual amount required to reach his next destination but enough fuel to get back to Holland. Unfortunately, this was a short-sighted decision as it increased the overall weight of his jumbo jet by 15 per cent. This decision demanded more speed and a longer-than-normal distance for takeoff. Van Zanten couldn’t see much as a thick cloud/ fog rolled in, which challenged the acceptable visibility limits, and the centre-line runway lights were not operational.

Lastly, notwithstanding the airport’s sole runway being used for takeoffs and landings, the two 747s needed to taxi down the same runway because the other taxiways were full of aircraft, to await further instruction. Captain Van Zanten pre-maturely commenced his take off without clearance. Taking off at full speed with less than permissible visibility, the second 747—a vehicle meant for flying not driv-

ing—couldn’t get off in time. Van Zanten’s now heavily fuelled KLM 747, which needed more runway and speed to lift off, collided with Pan Am’s 747, taking with it 583 souls.

In the fire service, firefighters, fire officers and chief officers rely on fire service leaders to make ideal decisions, personally and professionally. It is human to make errors, but when those errors pile up in succession, less-than-ideal and/or disastrous outcomes can result. Worse is when leaders are tired, stressed, unfamiliar or dealing with a pile of other relating or unrelating factors; that’s when errors turn into disasters.

Leaders have a duty to be in the best possible shape they can be physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. Fire service leaders are best served maintaining an ideal performance state. By focusing on human performance, fire service leaders

will exude great decisions via good judgment. Equally important, is five to seven; this seems to be the magic number of precursors that have resulted in incidents, accidents and even major disasters.

Situational awareness is an especially important subject for the fire service. Equally fundamental is the power that stems from unrelating or relating factors that can impact a decision. Fire service leaders are accountable for making decisions that affect the staff’s professional and personal worlds; there lies a duty to take care of both the employees and the organization. Instilling habits that promote an ideal performance state, amidst having the awareness of the power five to seven precursors can have, makes for effective fire service leader decisions.

For a full list of references, please visit cdnfirefighter.com/ psych-ppe-human-factors-and-high-stakes-decisions/

Back to basics

By Mark van der Feyst

Mark van der Feyst has been in the fire service since 1999 and is currently a firefighter with the FGFD. Mark is an international instructor teaching in Canada, the United States and India, and at FDIC. He can be contacted at Mark@FireStarTraining.com.

Desensitizing firefighters – Communication

As we continue to look at how firefighters become de-sensitized, we are going to deal with the topic of communications on the fire ground. This is one main area that always requires constant attention and improvement from all involved. With every LODD Report, one consistent recommendation is regarding communications. Let’s look at some common issues that are consistently present on the fire ground.

Active listening

Active listening is a skill that needs to be exercised when using any type or brand of portable radio. There is so much chatter that takes place over the portable radio that sometimes people tend to miss key information or when they are called by someone else. Distractions can certainly occur on the fire ground which will cause a person to not be listening actively.

When the incident commander is bombarded with calls on the radio as well as firefighters wanting face-toface time, it is very easy to miss information coming through the radio. On the flip side, when the firefighter or officer is intently focused on a certain task or issue, they too will block out or not hear the radio and will miss key communications.

Active listening requires intently listening to the radio – it is devoting your full attention to hearing what is being transmitted over the airwaves. Officers assigned to a crew and RIT teams will be the ones who should be actively listening to the radio; pump operators/drivers also need to be doing this so that they can support interior crews with

what they need before it’s asked for by Command or accountability officers/ISO.

Missing information

There needs to be exercised restraint when it comes to using the portable radio by each person.

Missing information occurs when a member transmits a message but does not include all the information. This can be due to not thinking about what needs to be said before transmitting or from improper keying of the radio which cuts out parts of the message. The latter is the more common mistake made by most users – they start speaking too quickly before keying the mic or they cut themselves off too quickly before finishing.

A good rule to remember is key 1-2-3; key the mic, count 1-2-3 and then start speaking. This will ensure that the entire message will be captured and transmitted.

No control

Ultimately, there is too much chat-

ter on the radio. Some individuals love to talk on the portable radio; every chance they get, they will key the mic and send a message across. Sometimes the message they’re sending is not that urgent or relevant to the situation and yet it gets transmitted, tying up the radio from somebody else who needs to send an important message or request.

There needs to be exercised restraint when it comes to using the portable radio by each person. Firefighters and officers need to learn that the portable radio is not a personal DJ radio mic; it is a lifeline for each person who has one with them.

For those people who are prone to abusing the portable radio, perhaps removing the radio from them is the best solution. This will show them that they need to exercise restraint when using the radio while at the same time freeing up airtime for the remaining members who need it.

The five C’s of radio communications

The essential elements of effective incident scene communications fall into five categories. Understanding these attributes of successful communication and engaging in the suggested strategies will enhance the overall communication on the emergency incident scene.

Conciseness

• Keep the messages short. This will help in reducing radio traffic.

• Keep the messages specific. Think about what you want to say before you speak.

• Condense the message as much as you can while keeping it complete. This will help in eliminating any confusion by the receiver.

Clarity

• Use standard terms as defined in your department’s procedures. This will avoid any confusion on the incident scene.

• Use plain-text language in all radio communications. Avoid using ten-codes, acronyms or technical jargon.

• Avoid multitasking. Describe and assign one task at a time to company members. Do not overload a company with multiple tasks to be completed at one time.

Confidence

• Calmly communicate on the radio. This helps to maintain calmness on the scene and does not create or add to hysteria.

• Be audibly received. Speak in a voice loud enough to be heard by the receiver. Do not speak in soft tones or yell into the radio.

• Use a good vocal pitch to communicate, as this will help to be audibly received.

Control

• Take control of the radio communications on the incident scene. Follow established departmental procedures and protocols.

• Minimize unnecessary radio chatter. Prioritize messages to be sent and received.

• Keep your emotions in check. This will help with establishing confidence and allow for more sensible direction to be given.

Capability

• Use active listening skills. Be sure to hear all the messages that are being transmitted to you. This may require being in a quiet place versus being outside near a working engine.

• Know how to use the communications equipment. Know where to hold the radio or microphone in relation to your mouth, SCBA face piece, or other radios nearby that may produce feedback.

Conquering the hill

The story of Firefit champion

Katie Ross

By Jason Woodford

It’s said the wolf on top of the hill is not as hungry as the wolf climbing the hill.

On the sidelines, Katherine “Katie” Ross embodies the sport of Firefit. She’s all smiles, helpful and enthusiastic, but on the inside, she’s starving. From the time Firefit’s Mike Gilbert yells “Go!”, she’s all business.

Touted by many as the “toughest two minutes in sports”, Firefit is a series of practical skills performed by firefighters. These skills are known as the five facets or, to some, the five stages of pain. They are as follows:

1. Stair climb (with a 42lbs high rise pack)

2. Equipment hoist (42lbs hose roll)

3. Force Machine (with a deadblow hammer)

4. Charged hose advance

5. Rescue Randy victim drag (175lbs)

All of these events must be done wearing the full firefighter ensemble, weighing upwards of 60 pounds.

Since 2019, Firefit Katie—as she’s known by aspiring young fans—has been that wolf on top of the hill. That was the year she surpassed Alivia Walker as the fastest female in the

Firefit world. Like a car without a rear-view mirror, there’s been no looking back.

Ross has been a full-time firefighter in Brampton, Ont., since 2017. Growing up playing sports is where she developed her competitive nature. Competing at a high level of CrossFit and attending events such as Wodapolooza, has made her no stranger to the competition floor. However, things haven’t always been sunshine and rainbows for Ross. In 2017, she was told there was no room for her on a relay team. So, with the help and encouragement of long-time competitor Chip Pringle, she packed her car and drove to Ottawa to compete in her first individual race.

The next few years would help mold Ross into the cham-

pion she has become. Rigorous training and a dedication to learning new techniques made 2018 promising, helping push women further below two minutes—to 1:56. Only a handful of women have reached the elusive category known as “sub2”. This helped to build Ross’s appetite.

Although Ross is most certainly the wolf on top of the hill, if you were to ask her, she would tell you she is always the wolf still climbing the hill. Never full, never satisfied. She’s chasing a time, not a person. Although winning the race is important, it leaves too many things up for debate: Did someone have a bad race? Were they injured? Was the weather a factor? A time is carved in stone; it’s undeniable.

The time “Stink Bomb” Katie—a name given to her by her supportive sponsors—is chasing is under 1:50. In 2023, she ran a time of 1:51.66 at a regional event in Windsor, breaking her old record by .11 seconds. That wasn’t enough. At the national event held in Sarnia, she inched closer with a 1:50.85 in a wildcard race. Even though those were both new records, it still wasn’t enough.

At the sold-out 2023 Firefit National Championship, held in Kamloops, B.C., Firefit owner Dale McRoberts shared with the crowd a very personal story of a long-time friend who lost his leg to cancer. This friend started training with McRoberts and soon he began running marathons. With every step this person took, he said it felt like there was a pebble in his shoe, yet he pushed on regardless of how cumbersome that ‘pebble’ got. McRoberts hoped this story would encourage others to overcome adversity.

At the main event on the Saturday, Ross’s foot was swollen and taped up. A nagging injury—a pebble in her shoe. But she stated that she could have the results or excuses, not both. Ross raced anyway.

Katherine “Katie” Ross finished at 1:46.53.

Marilyn Monroe is quoted as saying, “Give a woman the right pair of shoes and she’ll conquer the world.” Ross’s footwear of choice is a pair of lace-up bunker boots, and Firefit is her world.

She’s chasing a time, not a person.

Jason Woodford has been a firefighter for 14 years. He’s a large proponent of fitness in the fire service.

YOUR HEADQUARTERS FOR TRAINING & PUBLIC EDUCATION MATERIALS

Fire Inspection and Code Enforcement, 9th Edition

$100.00 | Item #36913

This new 9th edition from IFSTA provides fire and emergency services personnel and civilian inspectors with the information they need to meet the job performance requirements (JPRs) of Chapter 7 of NFPA 1030, 2024 Edition. Skill Sheets have been added to the manual, and discussion questions and a new Instructor’s Toolbox have been added to most chapters.

Principles of Fire Behavior and Combustion, 5th Ed.

$135.60 | Item #1284198584

The most current and accurate source of fire behavior information available to firefighters and fire science students today. Readers will develop a thorough understanding of the chemical and physical properties of flammable materials and fire, the combustion process, and the latest in suppression and extinguishment.

Fire Scene Discipline: True Stories of Close Calls

$67.00 | Item #1593705862

This book details Danny Sheridan’s 37-year career and experience with fire attacks, ventilation, rescue, collapse, and communication by examining real-life incidents such as Hurricane Katrina and the World Trade Center attacks. The author shares these close calls to illustrate the concepts of risk and reward on the fireground while giving insight into firefighters’ high-stakes decisions, from assessing fire size and location to evaluating structure stability and access.

From hire to retire

By Arjuna George

has transitioned his leadership and resilience expertise into coaching and consulting for the fire service community. Connect with him at silverarrowco.com or via arjuna@ silverarrowco.com.

Microlearning for firefighters

A game-changer in continuous education

MICROLEARNING FOR FIREFIGHTERS: MASTERING SKILLS ON THE GO

In the fast-paced and ever-evolving world of fire fighting, staying updated with the latest strategies, safety protocols and technological advancements is crucial. It can be challenging to allocate time for extensive training sessions. This is where the concept of Microlearning comes into play, offering a revolutionary approach to continuous education without overwhelming the learners. Facilitated through social media, Microlearning provides firefighters with quick, accessible and relevant insights tailored to fit into their hectic schedules.

Understanding Microlearning

Microlearning breaks down complex information into manageable, bite-sized pieces, making it easier to digest and remember. Imagine learning from a short instructional video on YouTube, a concise TikTok tutorial, or a detailed infographic on Instagram. These small learning segments deliver focused information exactly when needed, making learning more efficient and effective.

Efficiency: Firefighters operate in an environment where every second counts. Microlearning fits perfectly into their busy schedules, allowing them to learn on the go without disrupting their essential duties.

Retention: Studies have shown that learning in short bursts can significantly enhance memory retention. For firefighters, this means recalling crucial information quickly in critical situations.

Practicality: The dynamic nature of fire fighting requires constant adaptation to new techniques and technologies. Microlearning through social media provides real-time, relevant and portable learning opportunities, keeping firefighters up to date with the latest advancements.

Leveraging technology

Technology is pivotal in modern fire fighting, from advanced communication tools

to sophisticated simulation software. Embracing Microlearning ensures firefighters stay informed about these advancements, keeping them prepared and well-equipped to tackle various challenges.

Incorporating Microlearning into fire fighting routines

Selective engagement : Firefighters should curate their social media feeds to focus on content related to fire fighting techniques, safety protocols and technological innovations. They can ensure their feeds are filled with valuable learning resources by engaging with quality content. Setting learning objectives: Identifying specific skills or knowledge areas for improvement is crucial. Dedicating just 10

minutes daily to learning on social media can accumulate to approximately 60.83 hours of training over a year, significantly impacting professional development.

Interactive learning : Engaging with dynamic content such as online quizzes, virtual simulations and challenges can help reinforce knowledge and assess learning progress.

Enhancing fire fighting training

Integrating Microlearning into regular training regimes can lead to more efficient skill acquisition. This complements hands-on training, facilitating continuous improvement without requiring extensive time commitments. Microlearning not only makes learning more accessible and flexible but also transforms it into an engaging and enjoyable experience.

In today’s digital age, Microlearning is a vital component of the learning landscape, especially for demanding professions like fire fighting. It offers many opportunities for growth and access to a wealth of information, making training highly portable and convenient. By adopting Microlearning, firefighters can experience a profound impact on their professional growth and personal development, staying ahead in their ever-changing field.

The journey toward integrating Microlearning into your professional life begins with a simple step. Start by adjusting your social media habits to focus on educational content, setting clear learning objectives. This approach will enhance your skills and knowledge and make learning a continuous, practical, fulfilling part of your life. As a retired fire chief and a proponent of lifelong learning, I encourage you to embark on this transformative journey, leveraging the power of Microlearning to achieve unparalleled professional growth and resilience in the face of challenges.

Arjuna George (Fire Chief, Ret.)

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