A series of Tailboard Talks kicked off FireFusion 2025, bringing a variety of fire service names to the stage to briefly discuss pertinent topics facing firefighters today.
The four speakers included:
- Robin Zevotek, Principal Fire Protection Engineer, NFPA. Zevotek has more than 20 years of experience in fire and emergency services.
- Andy Bozzo, co-founder, Tablet Command. Bozzo has more than 27 years of experience in the fire service
- Chrisopher Zak, deputy chief, Hanahan, SC, Fire Department. Zak has more than three decades of experience in the fire service.
- Brian Gettemeier, captain, Cottleville Fire Protection District in St. Charles County, MO. Gettemeier has more than 31 years of fire service experience.
Zevotek: As a Fire Chief, Should I be Using AI?
Zevotek began tailboard talks by breaking down AI and what concerns there are within the emergency response field.
He discussed data privacy/security and being okay with the information being put into AI models also available to the public, using disclosure if AI is utilized, intellectual property of the material you are creating with AI and data quality, bias and context output by AI.
Zevotek brought up use cases from his own personal endeavors of AI being able to digest large documents and CAD notes for incident analysis, along with image analysis and translation. He also mentioned verifying alignments to grant applications and codes/standards, and talked about its usefulness for drafting reports, presentations and emails.
Bozzo: The Importance of an Incident Command Structure
Following Zevotek was Bozzo with his presentation on the origin and impact of Tablet Command.
Tablet Command was an idea Bozzo had after playing the game Words with Friends, because he noticed how easy communication with the person he was playing with was, even with the possibility of that person being across the world.
He emphasized the benefits of Tablet Command and how it can provide notifications, real-time incident management, customizable standards and data aggregation under one pane. Additionally, Bozzo mentioned the speed of Tablet Command, along with it standardized and recognizable with enhancing safety and providing total accountability.
Gettemeier: Throwing Ladders for First Floor or Below Operations
Gettemeier was the third speaker of the Tailboard Talks and switched the focus from technology to operations.
The beginning of his presentation started with showing the places where firefighters practice their craft from the internet to the training grounds.
Referring to statistics showing that 19.6 percent of maydays were falls into the basement and showing that basement level fires are pivotal to know but not talked about enough.
Additionally, Gettemeier showed that first floor and below operations can go under the radar. The vent, enter, isolate and search strategy (VEIS) is largely taught as a second story skill, so he proposed the solution to throwing a ladder to the first floor. Finally, he emphasized the importance of knowing the mutual aid in your area to prevent block-ins and leaving room for the ladders on-scene.
Zak: The Grass Isn’t Always Greener
Zak’s presentation was tailored towards his personal journey of leaving his life in Connecticut and moving to Charleston, SC, to be a part of the fire department there.
His message centered around taking that leap and seeing the grass as greener on the other side, but only because you are watering it differently. His leadership lessons contained messages of having to unlearn before you can lead again, growing when you are uncomfortable because you are stepping into that new soil.
He shared lessons from his progression of switching departments of culture, opportunity and perspective.
Closing Statements
Zevotek came back on stage to deliver closing statements for the Tailboard Talks and centered the message around NFPA emergency response standards and how it is a framework that makes an inherently dangerous job a little safer.
About the Author
Ryan Baker
Ryan Baker is a writer and associate editor with prior experiences in online and print production. Ryan is an associate editor for Firehouse with a master's degree in sciences of communication from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. He recently completed a year of teaching Intro to Public Speaking at UW-Whitewater, as part of his graduate program. Ryan acquired his bachelor's degree in journalism in 2023 from UW-Whitewater, and operates currently out of Minneapolis, MN. Baker, also writes freelances for the Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA) in his free time, while also umpiring baseball for various ages across the Twin Cities Metro Area.