“Choosing not to have an incident safety officer in place is itself a problem lying in wait and will come back to haunt you in the future,” words of caution in a new video from Gordon Graham, a 33-year veteran of California Law Enforcement, is also a Risk Manager, attorney and professional speaker in both private and public sector organizations.
“Sometimes things don’t go right and when things don’t go right there are significant consequences,” said Graham.
In the video released by the Fire Department Safety Officers Association, Graham minces few words to encourage training of Incident Safety Officers and Health Safety Officers.
“Gordon Graham has always been committed to firefighter safety and reducing the risks within the job,” said Rich Marinucci, FDSOA Executive Director. “As a renowned expert, he knows the value of certified Incident Safety Officers and Health and Safety Officers in improving the wellness and safety of firefighters.”
In 2002, Graham expanded efforts to assist other public safety organizations, and with Chief Billy Goldfeder, developed FirefighterCloseCalls, [www.firefighterclosecalls.com] which is now the recognized source for information about firefighter safety. The IAFC awarded Gordon with the Presidential Award for Excellence for his lifelong work in improving firefighter safety and performance. Sixteen years ago, Graham and Bruce Praet founded Lexipol–a company designed to standardize policy, procedure and training in public safety operations.
The 2019 FDSOA Safety Forum will be held January 23-24 at the Wyndham Orlando Resort I-Drive, Orlando, Florida. Prior to the Safety Forum, the two-day Incident Safety Officer Academy and the Health & Safety Officer Academy will be held on January 21-22.
Concurrently, the FDSOA Apparatus Specification and Maintenance Symposium is January 21-23, 2019. Pre-conference programs are scheduled for Sunday, January 20 and a new post-conference, hands-on aerial maintenance program is scheduled for Wednesday, January 23.
For more information visit: www.fdsoa.org.
The Fire Department Safety Officers Association (FDSOA) was established in 1989 as a non-profit association, incorporated in Massachusetts. In 2013, the offices moved to Michigan. Its mission is to promote safety standards and practices in the fire, rescue and emergency services community. The association is led by a volunteer board of directors and has a small staff to handle the day-to-day operations. The association is dedicated to the issues that affect the critical role of the safety officer in protecting and promoting the safety and health responsibilities of fire departments, communities and first responders. FDSOA works to helps fire departments achieve proficiency and promote the recognition of training, skills and a secure future. In May 2016, FDSOA won the Paul S. Sarbanes Fire Service Safety Leadership Award for its work over 29 years, “as an organization fully dedicated to the health and safety of the nation’s firefighters.”
