Code 3 - The Firefighters Podcast Scott Orr

There’s a constant battle between firefighters who believe that safety on the fireground precludes aggressive tactics.
The opposite is also true.
What’s the compromise between the two?
It seems as if firefighters don’t believe that it’s possible to be both aggressive and safe.
It is, of course, and my guest today is here to offer some suggestions about how you can implement both.
He’s no wimp—he puts Mrs. Smith first, his crew second, and his own personal safety third.
Ryan Scellick is a Captain at the City of Pasco Fire Department, in Washington State. He is the co-owner of Young Officers on Fire which puts on annual conferences, trainings, and manages a national non-profit mentorship group.

What’s potentially harder to locate victims in than a hoarder house?
A stuffed-full self-storage locker.
But that’s exactly what can happen. And even if the victim’s not inside at the time of the fire, their activities may have caused it.
Those storage spaces are frequently climate-controlled, and they’re cheap…maybe $100 a month for a small one.
That makes them seem like a great place to live for someone who can’t afford to rent an apartment.
They aren’t, of course, and occupants who choose to try living in one can become the victim of a fire they can’t escape.
This week, my guest tells us about his experiences with homeless people who tried to make a storage unit home…and regretted it.
Tim Thompson is chief of the Georgetown, Kentucky Fire Department. He’s worked his way up over 19 years of service from firefighter to the boss. He’s also a member of the Kentucky Association of Fire Chiefs.

Are you ready for this?
There’s a whole class of hazardous chemicals that can damage your hearing, and they’re by-products of your average structure fire.
Yes, that’s right: When you burn home furnishings, you don’t just get carcinogens. You get “ototoxic” chemicals.
Now, the PPE you wear routinely for firefighting protects against this.
But—just like the stuff in smoke that causes cancer—ototoxic chemicals are a threat when you least expect them: during overhaul and even standing outside a burning structure.
And when you combine exposure to ototoxins with screaming sirens and fireground noise, well, it’s no surprise that firefighters are often retiring with substantial hearing loss.
Here to tell you what you need to know is Brian Daboul. He’s chief of the Mine Hill Fire Department in New Jersey. That’s a volunteer department, and Brian’s paid job is in occupational safety strategy and program development. He is also the owner of BGD Safety and Compliance, LLC, which serves industry and fire departments.

A recent study done at North Carolina State University took a look at PFAS chemicals used in turnout gear and came to some interesting conclusions.
PFS layers are what give current turnout coats and pants their oil and water repellency.
They're also a known carcinogen, so donning PPE made with PFAS is dangerous even before you step onto your engine or truck.
Unfortunately, when the study looked at alternatives, it found that all oil repellents can also repel water, but all water repellents don’t necessarily repel oil.
My guest on this show is Bryan Ormond, an assistant professor of textile engineering, chemistry and science at NC State. He also wrote up the results of the study.

One
of the best ways to learn anything is by experience.



A
better way, though, is to learn from others’ experiences.



That’s
why we’re talking with today’s guest—to get some insight from someone who
learned the hard way.



Captain
Jeremiah King has been with the Central Arizona Fire and Medical Authority for
more than 20 years.



But
the story of this response takes place when he was about four years into his career.



And
as you’ll hear, that career—not to mention, his life—nearly came to an end one
night on a structure fire in a large home.




One of the best ways to learn anything is by experience.
A better way, though, is to learn from others’ experiences.
That’s why we’re talking with today’s guest—to get some insight from someone who
learned the hard way.
Captain Jeremiah King has been with the Central Arizona Fire and Medical Authority for
more than 20 years.
But the story of this response takes place when he was about four years into his career.
And as you’ll hear, that career—not to mention, his life—nearly came to an end one
night on a structure fire in a large home.

Anyone who has ever fought a wildland fire knows situational
awareness is critical to safety and effectiveness on the fireground.
But visibility, a key part of that awareness, is often limited by thick smoke in the wildland fire environment.
Call it the fog of war, if you like.
No matter what you call it, it’s tough to fight a fire when you can’t see through the smoke.
That lack of visibility can lead to all kinds of trouble—especially vehicle accidents.
Today, in this special edition of Code 3, we’ll explore one commercial product that can make the wildland environment safer for firefighters.
It’s called Hypersight, built by RPX Technologies. It’s a tough, vehicle-mounted thermal imaging camera. It allows the crew in the cab to see through smoke as they drive.
But it can show more than that, and as you’ll hear, it also has applications in urban firefighting settings.
And joining me is Stan Cannata, to explain how the HyperSight system gives fire crews an advantage in dangerous situations.