Natural disasters and human-made calamities are increasing the number and duration of “historic” incidents that place fire and EMS crews on the pointy tip of response, rescue, and recovery. Our ability to make a difference is complicated by resources thinned-out since the 2008 recession, increased density in wildland and urban settings, as well as aging and failing infrastructures. There was much discussion of the “New Normal” after the 9/11 attacks, the past few years have shown a NEW New Normal of record-breaking incidents that challenge our all-hazards response capabilities.
As I edit this article on the Sunday afternoon before the Monday posting, Governor Newsom has declared a state-wide fire emergency in California due to the 70+ mile-per-hour winds fueling explosive wildfire growth throughout the state. In Sonoma County 185,000 residents are under a mandatory evacuation order, the county has 504,000 residents. Evacuation progress is significantly slower as the PG&E power outage has made all of the traffic signals dark and some wireless communications are disrupted.
Here are three ideas to consider
Public Safety Interoperable Communications
The National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC) developed a set of communications best practices. They identified 13 major topics. Here are the ones that you should consider:
3. Training and Proficiency in the Management and Usage of Interoperability Systems
Radio Interoperability (I/O) equipment and systems should be used and managed only by personnel who have been properly trained and who have demonstrated proficiency with the appropriate technical, operational, and procedural aspects. This Best Practice applies to technicians, responders, telecommunicators, and managers, and includes both operational and interoperability issues.
7. After Action Reviews
Any After Action Review (AAR) held following a significant emergency incident or preplanned event that involved interoperability resources should include both operational and technical components including those which focus on communications infrastructure.
9. Deployment of Interoperability Resources
In any incident or event, there must be an early awareness of the need for augmented communications support, at the scene and in the communications center, to include both interoperability resources, and supplemental technical and support staff.
10. Communications Span of Control
There should be one and only one talk path utilized for communications between first responders and the immediate supervisor managing their function during activity involving environments considered to be Immediately Dangerous to Life and Health1 (IDLH), or during critical tactical law enforcement activities.
A link below will take you to the 105-page document.
Think Big
A good emergency plan makes provision for managing all the known and anticipated hazards (the seasonal and recurrent events), while at the same time offering generic protocols to manage the unanticipated ones.
The picture of the destroyed emergency management center in northeast Japan is a stark reminder of the magnitude of the planning elements. (Alexander 2015)
Company commanders need to have an emergency plan for their own crews that complement the agency’s plan and provide responders with safety and comfort during long deployments in harsh environments where shelter, toilet facilities or electrical power may be absent.
Firefighters and EMS Caregivers Should Pack Like their Wildfire partners
Our West Coast colleagues have decades of experience operating at wildfire incidents that require a fire company to operate for days in the field. Chief Tim Ryan explains the value of his “red bag”:
Where I live and work, many assignments last three to four days and the red bag is perfect for that amount of time; it has everything I need neatly packed into stuff sacks. Undergarments, a spare Nomex shirt, T-shirts and pair of sweats for sleeping all fit pretty handily into one stuff sack.
I also carry a small stove with some instant coffee and a freeze-dried dinner or two (I can’t tell you how many times I was glad to have those!).
Also stuffed in my red bag is a tent, made as compact as possible with a compression bag. In the front pocket, I stuff toiletries, a cell phone charger, and a headlamp.
Finally, the bag contains my sleeping bag (handily stored in the compartment designed for it) and an inflatable sleeping pad. I could survive for several days with this bag and my line gear alone and would be even more comfortable if there is more food stashed somewhere on the engine. All of this equipment fits in one bag and weighs about 40 lbs.
The value of the red bag is covered in this September 27, 2015, New York Times article:
When the Valley Fire broke out here two weeks ago, firefighters who had been deployed to other corners of the state scrambled to confront the blaze as it grew to 70,000 acres. Mr. Lindsay hopped onto a fire engine but forgot his “red bag” — a sack with fresh clothes and other personal gear. He spent three days borrowing other firefighters’ socks and turning his underwear inside out. (In Vicious Fire Season, an Endurance Test for California Crews)
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NPTSC (Updated May 2018) Best Practices for Public Safety Interoperable Communications. Littleton, CO: National Public Safety Telecommunications Council http://www.npstc.org/download.jsp?tableId=37&column=217&id=4121&file=NPSTC_Radio_IO_Best_Practice_Overall_Combined_Report_180615.pdf
Alexander, David (2015 September) Disaster and Emergency Planning for Preparedness, Response, and Recovery. Natural Hazard Science https://oxfordre.com/naturalhazardscience/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199389407.001.0001/acrefore-9780199389407-e-12
Ryan, Tim (2014 June 01) “Packing a Red Bag: Wildland Urban Interface” Fire-Rescue Magazine, Volume 9 Issue 6. Accessed September 22, 2018, from https://www.firerescuemagazine.com/articles/print/volume-9/issue-6/wildland-urban-interface/packing-a-red-bag.html The article also covers the Line Gear Bag, the Campaign Duffel and Fire Briefcase.
Featured Image: “Credit…Max Whittaker for The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/27/us/kincade-fire-california.html