Charleston Fire Department Case Study
Charleston Fire Department Case Study
Columbia Southern University
Advanced Fire Administration
Charleston Fire Department Case Study
On June 18, 2007 “the Charleston witnessed the largest single loss of fire fighters in the country since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.” (Smith, 2011) That day the fire service had to witness the unfortunate loss of nine firemen who died in the line of duty. Some would say that the deaths of these nine men were an atrocity to the fire service. The events that took place that day made it evident that there are still places that follow tradition and are afraid of change, even if the change is for the better. The fire service has made sufficient changes in the last twenty years to ensure the safety of all fire department personnel. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) “was established in 1896, and is to reduce the worldwide burden of fire and other hazards on the quality of life by providing and advocating consensus codes and standards, research, training, and education.” (NFPA, 2011) The NFPA then decided to create safety regulations for the fire service and “in 1987 the first edition of NFPA 1500, Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program was published. It was established to specify minimum fire service criteria in a variety of areas including emergency operations, facility safety, apparatus safety, critical incident stress management, medical and physical requirements, member fitness and wellness, and use of personal protective equipment (PPE).” (Stull, 2008) One of the primary tools that a department has is the Incident Management System. With the standards listed in NFPA 1500 there are precise directions that will provide guidelines on how to instill properly use IMS.
Before the incident even began in Charleston the culture had the fire department set for failure. The mental environment that had been around for many years led to the horrible events that occurred that
Columbia Southern University
Advanced Fire Administration
Charleston Fire Department Case Study
On June 18, 2007 “the Charleston witnessed the largest single loss of fire fighters in the country since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.” (Smith, 2011) That day the fire service had to witness the unfortunate loss of nine firemen who died in the line of duty. Some would say that the deaths of these nine men were an atrocity to the fire service. The events that took place that day made it evident that there are still places that follow tradition and are afraid of change, even if the change is for the better. The fire service has made sufficient changes in the last twenty years to ensure the safety of all fire department personnel. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) “was established in 1896, and is to reduce the worldwide burden of fire and other hazards on the quality of life by providing and advocating consensus codes and standards, research, training, and education.” (NFPA, 2011) The NFPA then decided to create safety regulations for the fire service and “in 1987 the first edition of NFPA 1500, Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program was published. It was established to specify minimum fire service criteria in a variety of areas including emergency operations, facility safety, apparatus safety, critical incident stress management, medical and physical requirements, member fitness and wellness, and use of personal protective equipment (PPE).” (Stull, 2008) One of the primary tools that a department has is the Incident Management System. With the standards listed in NFPA 1500 there are precise directions that will provide guidelines on how to instill properly use IMS.
Before the incident even began in Charleston the culture had the fire department set for failure. The mental environment that had been around for many years led to the horrible events that occurred that
Bibliography: Coleman, R. J. (2003). The Fire Chief 's Handbook 6th Edition. Tulsa: PennWell Corporation . NFPA. (2011). About NFPA. Retrieved November 8, 2011, from National Fire Protection Association: http://www.nfpa.org/categoryList.asp?categoryID=143&URL=About%20NFPA Smith, G. (2011, July 2). Sofa Super Store case ends. Charleston, South Carolina. Stull, J. O. (2008, June 19). How the NFPA 1500 Applies to Firefighter PPE. Retrieved November 8, 2011, from FireRescue1: http://www.firerescue1.com/fire-products/Personal-protective-equipment-ppe/articles/405678-How-NFPA-1500-Applies-to-Firefighter-PPE/ Vail, J. (2005, June 15). Span of Control and the Inefficiency of Hierarchy. Retrieved November 8, 2011 , from JeffVail: http://www.jeffvail.net/2005/06/span-of-control-and-inefficiency-of.html