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  • December 2025

    • December 2025

    Issue Description: The December issue of Firehouse includes feature articles on training conversations and the implementation of technology, along with a lab review, Firehouse's product showcase and our cancer prevention supplement.

    Cover Description: The New Orleans Fire Department responded to a fire at a long, two-story, 115-unit apartment building. A major challenge at the fire was that the fire walls that extended above the roofline actually were fake ones. That allowed the fire to run the entire length of the attic before firefighters could get ahead of it. Reports noted that the fire is believed to have started in a second-story laundry room. Eighteen apparatus and 88 firefighters responded to the incident, which went to five alarms. The apartment building was totally destroyed. Photo by Chris E. Mickal.

    Dedication: Three U.S. firefighters recently died in the line of duty— Firefighters Christopher Kindel and Patrick Brady and Fire Recruit Kalif Leslie Daly. This issue of Firehouse is dedicated to these firefighters.

    More content from December 2025

    volunteer fire department planning preparation training Brandon Fletcher Gilt Edge Fire Department Tennessee
    Brandon Fletcher urges volunteer fire department leaders to recognize the fact that planning call response risks ineffectiveness if preparation, including training that involves...
    Dec. 23, 2025
    Photo courtesy of the Tucson Fire Department
    For the Tucson, AZ, Fire Department, cancer prevention begins on scene. After the fire is knocked down, Preliminary Exposure Reduction (PER) practices are activated. These include firefighters wiping down exposed skin using department-issued cleansing wipes and PPE being doffed carefully and sealed in vapor-resistant bags and quarantined to contain any off-gassing toxins.
    Vera Wuerfel tells how the Tucson, AZ, Fire Department ensures that its chiefs, officers and firefighters are screened for cancer annually and works at Preliminary Exposure Reduction...
    Dec. 22, 2025
    fire department leadership workplace violence threat assessment Fire Law Curt Varone
    Curt Varone stresses to fire department leaders their obligation to assess potential threats of violence in the workplace and how to assess those via a structured, consistent ...
    Dec. 19, 2025
    Photos by Jake Hoffman
    When a department wants to formalize an existing ice rescue program or create one from scratch, reaching out to neighboring and/or regional departments or external resources can provide a leg up regarding equipment and outside training providers to consider and improved interoperability down the road. Here, two departments and the U.S. Coast Guard work on ice rescue techniques at a joint training.
    Jake Hoffman provides a step-by-step guide for a fire department that wants to create an ice rescue program or a department that wants to formalize an existing program.
    Dec. 18, 2025
    2025 Product Showcase
    Suppliers of products, software and other technology for the fire service display their latest offerings.
    Dec. 17, 2025
    EMS patient care National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians
    Paul Rosenberger explains why the value of the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians extends to clinicians, employers and the public.
    Dec. 16, 2025
    Photo by Glen E. Ellman
    firefighter cancer awareness prevention 2025 supplement
    The Cancer Awareness & Prevention supplement reviews various efforts to decrease firefighter exposure to carcinogens.
    Dec. 15, 2025
    Photo courtesy of Sylvester's Firefighter Cancer Initiative
    A survey of Florida firefighters revealed that 91.1 percent of respondents adopted the use of the so-called Green Bucket as part of preliminary exposure reduction (PER).
    Four members of Sylvester's Firefighter Cancer Initiative and other experts tell of how a decon bucket that contains 10 basic items has prompted a 91.1 percent on-scene adoption...
    Dec. 12, 2025
    Photos by Nashville Fire Department
    Articulation in the joints of Ansell's AlphaTec Phantom hazmat suit allows for decent mobility despite the density of the suit's construction.The mask seal is snug without being suffocating.
    Firehouse Labs asked the Nashville Fire Department to assist it in the evaluation of Ansell's AlphaTec Phantom hazmat suit. The takeaway: Solid, functional, well designed in numerous...
    Dec. 11, 2025
    Photo by Shannon Hoffman
    Staffing that’s specified in NFPA 1710: Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special Operations to the Public by Career Fire Departments is just a start for commercial building fires. Fireground commanders must consider a staffing that’s above and beyond this initial start based on numerous considerations. Command teams for commercial buildings are definitely more complex than residential command teams.
    Curt Isakson reminds that fires at commercial buildings are bigger, hotter, faster and more complex than fires at residences and that fireground commanders must plan for fire ...
    Dec. 10, 2025
    Photo by Sarah Lowe
    Firefighter candidates, probationary firefighters and new firefighters often bring traits of the younger generations that can impede their grasp of what's required of them in carrying out their job and tasks. The best instructors and officers have a skill set and a passion that allow them to deliver the right corrective messages, including immedately after an incident.
    Ariel "AJ" Jackson is adamant about instructors' and officers' responsibility to tell probationary and new firefighters—even at the scene of an incident—when they are falling ...
    Dec. 9, 2025
    Photos by Tom W. Shand
    Quint 3-8-11 is one of two Spartan ER Smeal 107-foot quints that are operated by the Hauppauge, NY, Fire District (HFD). Outfitted with a 238-inch wheelbase, the rig proved to be maneuverable in the response area, which was confirmed by reviewing turning radius charts at the preconstruction conference.
    Tom Shand and Michael Wilbur's scrutiny of two quints and a pumper reveals how department officers and members applied their knowledge of their respective response districts to...
    Dec. 9, 2025
    fire department lawsuits after-action reviews operations scrutiny Peter Matthews As Firehouse Sees It
    Peter Matthews urges fire departments to consider the recent release of after-action reviews and the result of a lawsuit for reflection on and scrutiny of their operations.
    Dec. 8, 2025
    Photo by Matt Shronts
    The fire service doesn't have to choose between technology and hands-on training. Strong leadership blends modern tools with timeless skills development, all while guiding the newest firefighters with empathy while still maintaining high standards.
    Matt Shronts explains why great fire department leaders implement a hybrid approach to learning that integrates technology with rigorous, scenario-based, hands-on drills
    Sept. 29, 2025