Risk Management
Risk management is the practice of keeping firefighters safe, well trained and out of trouble.
Wearing proper gear and following strong radio communication protocols can significantly impact broader performance and safety
Chicago’s new fireground SOP is a reminder for departments to review command roles, operational readiness and compliance before a critical incident forces change
Chicago firefighters and city leaders are raising alarms over new guidelines requiring four-person engine crews to delay entry unless victims are visibly trapped
A NIOSH investigation details how deteriorated conditions, fire below and strategy gaps led to four serious firefighter injuries
Dr. Rich Gasaway encourages all firefighters to study near-miss reports, not to judge those involved but to learn from them
Applying risk management principles to reduce fire engineer driving risks
Agawam firefighters entered a heavily burning home on Juniper Ridge Drive to rescue an older man before bringing the fire under control
After a delayed response to a fire, a welder designed a lower-cost skid unit for homeowners, though officials warn residents not to fight fires themselves
Effective EOCs depend on empowered decision-makers, disciplined structure and trust built long before activation
The risk management expert delivers commonsense wisdom, including three actions he would take if he were in charge
A practical playbook for protecting soft targets without disrupting public life
Firefighters are willing to raise red flags. Chiefs and company officers determine whether those warnings lead to accountability
Modesto firefighters responded to a reported structure fire and conducted an aggressive interior attack and search after 911 calls reported someone inside
Roof failures, floor collapses and basement fires are the moments that test your training
In Cameron Park, a KB Home neighborhood is marketing fire-resistant construction and ember-blocking design as a way to reduce wildfire danger and improve insurability
Collapse during RIT operations highlights the need for improved pre-incident planning and collapse zone awareness at vacant structures
Departments are encouraged to spotlight their CRR efforts and share success stories
Risk identification must go beyond simple yes-or-no questions to consider the various mitigation options
Reports of people trapped inside prompted Fresno firefighters to force entry and conduct searches in a boarded-up office building during a 2-alarm fire
Hartford firefighters faced heavy fire conditions at an abandoned three-story apartment building in the South End and operated defensively
Collapse
Camden firefighters knocked down a predawn blaze at an abandoned building, but heavy fire conditions led to a structural collapse
A multi-agency partnership transformed a trail access challenge into a rapid-response system built around e-bikes and coordinated mapping
The reimagined organization of Firefighter LSIs offers a new framework to shape safety, health and leadership efforts and reduce LODDs
St. Louis firefighters returned with heavy machinery to search the rubble for a homeless person reported missing by others who escaped the fire
NIOSH investigators found that dense fog, lack of road markings, inattentive driving and self-dispatching in a privately owned vehicle contributed to the crash
Investigators found that compromised size-up, poor risk/benefit decisions, weak crew integrity and missed 911 information all contributed to the Leonardtown incident
Honolulu Firefighter Jeff Fiala died after entering a burning home without a hoseline, a tactic now under investigation following a state safety probe
Deliberations begin in a wrongful death case alleging Rock Falls chiefs showed willful, wanton disregard in the 2021 fire that killed Sterling Lt. Garrett Ramos
The course turns NIOSH findings from the Greene County explosion into tactics and policy updates for rapid reefer ID, construction/insulation risks, reefer-specific size-up and chief readiness
