In this three-part series of columns, I am going to focus on developing effective and meaningful personnel performance evaluations. I begin by discussing why we need a strong...
BAYONNE, NJ: Sept. 1, 1906 – A new paid fire department went into service at 8 o’clock in the morning. It comprised five engine companies and two hook-and-ladder companies...
It is almost hard to believe that we are approaching the fifth anniversary of the terrorist attack on 9/11. We remember all those first responders who died in the line of duty...
A song from the faraway days of my youth urged us to "dream a little dream for me." How many of us had great dreams in our youth? I did. Perhaps you did too. As keeper of the...
Whenever a fire department suffers a line-of-duty fatality, it is a time of great sorrow and grief. After the pipers have left and the visitors have gone back to their own lives...
This training column is the third and final installment of a series on the "Five Deadly Sins" of thermal imaging. The first two columns concentrated on the most common, and potentially...
When I think about the future of our business, there is not a lot that makes me nervous or pessimistic. Having been around for several decades, I am well aware that change can...
As a youngster, I would go with my parents to visit my grandparents' graves in a Catholic cemetery in south St. Louis. As youngsters do, I would wander away and find myself walking...
A few months ago, I was at a serious fire in an industrial building observing the fire operations. As the fire department started its attack with several 1¾-inch handlines, ...
While there is growing awareness of the fire danger in housing for college students, progress has been painfully slow in passing the local codes, state laws and national legislation...
Meet the creator of a documentary that draws attention to everyday challenges the fi re service faces in an environment of shrinking resources and increasing demands.
Timothy R. Szymanski profiles a fire department that, in the past five years, has nearly doubled its workforce and opened five new fire stations. The department is looking into...