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1 week ago | 
ems1.com | Linda Willing
An emergency services friend recently asked if I could select one training priority for the new year, what would it be? I didn’t hesitate with my answer: “Situational awareness.”|More: Can situational awareness be taught? ‘Attention is limited’Good situational awareness has been a casualty of our modern times. You see it everywhere — people stepping into traffic while focused on their phones, drivers drifting through stop signs as they look at something in their vehicles.
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2 weeks ago | 
firerescue1.com | Linda Willing
Another fire department has been in the news related to an inappropriate posting on social media. In this most recent incident, a firefighter posted a photo of his crew inside a residence where they had responded to a structure fire. With the wreckage of an interior room behind them, the crew lined up for a photo with the caption, “I thought my crew only gets first dues when I’m gone.
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4 weeks ago | 
firerescue1.com | Linda Willing
Women in public safety have long had to adapt to their environment, accept the gear provided, (even if it doesn’t fit well) and often work twice as hard to prove themselves. In traditionally male-dominated roles, any research focused on women tends to be minimal. And more specifically, tactical research and resources geared toward women have been practically non-existent. As a small minority of those in tactical professions, women’s unique needs have been overlooked for too long — until now.
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1 month ago | 
gov1.com | Linda Willing
Performance reviews are often an uncomfortable – some would even say useless – process, both for those being reviewed and those conducting the review. But it doesn’t have to be this way. On a scale from 1-10: How rating systems skew resultsSometimes the flaw in the process is due to how the system was designed. I remember being subject to a performance review where every category was rated on a 1-10 scale, with 10 being perfect and 1 being most substandard.
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1 month ago | 
firerescue1.com | Linda Willing
I want to know exactly what happened that day in Delray Beach, Florida. Specifically, I want to know what was said and done in the cab of the fire apparatus just before it crossed the tracks and was struck by a commuter train. What we do knowThe basic facts are out there. On Dec. 28, 2024, at 1044, a City of Delray Beach, Florida, fire truck was driven around a closed safety gate at a railroad crossing and was struck by a Brightline commuter train traveling at 79 mph.
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1 month ago | 
firerescue1.com | Linda Willing
Performance reviews are often an uncomfortable – some would even say useless – process, both for those being reviewed and those conducting the review. But it doesn’t have to be this way. On a scale from 1-10: How rating systems skew resultsSometimes the flaw in the process is due to how the system was designed. I remember being subject to a performance review where every category was rated on a 1-10 scale, with 10 being perfect and 1 being most substandard.
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2 months ago | 
firerescue1.com | Linda Willing
False fire alarms are a common problem for fire departments. In my city, there was one source of false alarms that was consistent and troublesome: fraternity houses near a university campus. A few buildings were particularly bad, not just with frequency, but also in that the residents never followed protocols for fire alarms. Evacuation would be haphazard if it happened at all. Most often, occupants would silence or reset the system before we even arrived on scene.
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2 months ago | 
firerescue1.com | Linda Willing
If you ask fire service leaders what they think about mentoring, most of them will say it’s a good idea. But if you ask those same people how mentoring has functioned in their own organizations, you might get a different story. Some fire departments have long-standing, formal mentoring programs. Others have nothing at all. Many have something in between, either informal programs or just an attitude of encouraging people to engage in those kinds of relationships.
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2 months ago | 
firerescue1.com | Linda Willing
You are the officer in a station where two firefighters, Sandy and Ray, do not get along. You have been aware of problems between them for some time and have occasionally witnessed arguments or confrontations. You are also aware of rumors and gossip about both of them. The station atmosphere is being negatively affected due to this conflict. One day, you witness a heated argument between Sandy and Ray and tell them to come into your office. Once there, are you likely to say one of the following?
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2 months ago | 
firerescue1.com | Linda Willing
The first time I went to the National Fire Academy was in 1981, just a few years after it opened. I had only been a firefighter for a little over a year, but the academy was expanding its programming then and was actively recruiting students. I took a one-week class on arson detection, and the course content was good and helped me on the job. But more than that, the experience of being on campus for that week changed the trajectory of my career, and my life.
