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This episode features National Fire Sprinkler Association President Shane Ray, Assistant Chief Scott Williams, Blue Card Program Director Josh Blum, and John Vance.

We break down why today’s mega warehouses and cold storage facilities create fireground problems that residential tactics cannot solve, especially when fires start on the roof or exterior and burn inward. We share field-proven steps that keep firefighters alive by supporting sprinkler systems, slowing the pace, and managing the incident like a strategic operation instead of a quick interior push. 
• why “big box” and “mega warehouse” are different hazards 
• how roof and exterior fires drive bad sprinkler narratives 
• the Ohio case study where training and patience prevent firefighter losses 
• building the “big four” before entry: FDC supply, attack team, roof report, on-deck crew 
• why sprinkler-controlled fires are not compatible with routine ventilation 
• reading the riser plate, fire pump, and alarm panel to measure fire growth 
• requesting sprinkler and alarm contractors plus the water utility early 
• what NFPA 13E and NFPA 1700 change in SOPs, preplans, and training 
• why codes, owners, and access decisions shape outcomes long before dispatch 

Links shared / talked about by Shane Ray:

NFPA Warehouse Fires Report: https://www.nfpa.org/education-and-research/research/nfpa-research/fire-statistical-reports/warehouse-structure-fires

NFPA Challenges In Storage facilities: https://www.nfpa.org/education-and-research/research/fire-protection-research-foundation/projects-and-reports/identifying-challenges-to-fire-service-response-in-storage-facilities

Indiana Fire In Large Distribution Center: https://www.firehero.org/2026/01/14/plainfield-fire-territory-warehouse-fire/

The Blue Card Big Box Bulletin: https://conta.cc/3QpvT8u

Order the 3rd Edition of Fire Command here: https://bshifter.myshopify.com/products/new-fire-command-3rd-edition

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts: https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, check out bshifter.com

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We talk through mid-year Blue Card updates, why command training is worth paying for, and how regional leaders keep a shared system alive even when departments change chiefs. We also dig into big box fire realities and then break down working-fire radio audio that shows what clear size-up, assignments, and command transfer sound like.
• Blue Card as a decision-making and incident organization system rather than a tactics class
• Common myths about Blue Card and how bad information spreads
• The real cost of training and why “free” is not a plan
• Liability exposure tied to weak command training and predictable failure points
• Sustaining a command program through leadership commitment and ongoing verification
• ARFF program growth, upcoming train-the-trainer dates, and open seats
• A regional collaboration model from the Seacoast Chiefs and why standard language matters
• Big box and mega warehouse fires, sprinkler limits, FDC considerations, and defensive discipline
• Working-fire audio breakdown: initial radio report, 360, patient handling, CAN reports, and command transfer
• Timeless tactical truth on forecasting and doing now what saves time later

The Ladder 11 Shirt is here: https://bshifter.myshopify.com/products/ladder-11-shirt

Check out the Big Box Bulletin here: https://conta.cc/3QpvT8u

Order the 3rd Edition of Fire Command here:
https://bshifter.myshopify.com/products/new-fire-command-3rd-edition

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts:
https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, visit:
https://bshifter.com

Sign up for the B Shifter Buckslip, our free weekly newsletter:
https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/fmgs92N/Buckslip

Shop B Shifter:
https://bshifter.myshopify.com

Thanks for listening! 

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The Silverbacks are back, talking about performance management as an essential tool for fire service leaders.

This episode features Nick Brunacini, Terry Garrison, and John Vance.

We lay out a practical performance improvement model that keeps looping through SOPs, training, field application, monitoring, and revision so the work gets better every time. We also get blunt about what breaks the system: outdated policies, ego-driven resistance to change, weak critiques, and leaders who stop training. 
• circular performance improvement model tied to service delivery 
• why outdated SOPs create operational risk and legal exposure 
• keeping SOPs simple, task-focused, and grounded in real standards 
• making shared SOPs work across automatic aid departments 
• change resistance driven by ownership and ego, and how leadership pushes through  
• what makes an after-action review honest, consistent, and useful 
• critique pitfalls like pet peeves, grandstanding, and excluding firefighters 
• why leaders must keep training and prove competence at strategic levels 
• decision-making truth: no perfect choices, only best upside with least downside 

You can download all your operational SOPs off bluecard.com right now

Order the 3rd Edition of Fire Command here:
https://bshifter.myshopify.com/products/new-fire-command-3rd-edition

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts:
https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, visit:
https://bshifter.com

Sign up for the B Shifter Buckslip, our free weekly newsletter:
https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/fmgs92N/Buckslip

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We talk with UL FSRI’s Dr. Dan Madrzykowski about how fire dynamics drives outcomes at outside fires, vehicle fires, and “container” incidents just as much as it does in homes. This episode connects real case studies to practical command decisions so crews stop feeding the fire with ventilation and start controlling conditions with effective water application and better size-up.

In this episode:
• AFG grant window timing and why command training remains a high priority
• Fire dynamics basics that still get missed in structures
• Why ventilation can increase smoke production and fire growth
• Exterior fire spread that re-enters and traps interior crews
• Lagrange incident lessons and the need to flow and move
• Critical factors for IC1 and IC2 — because the fire gets a vote
• EV fire response priorities: life hazard, approach angle, water supply, and exposures
• When letting EV batteries burn out may reduce overall risk
• Trailer and container fires as ventilation-limited pressure vessel problems
• The “two-question pause” before giving orders and avoiding autopilot decision-making
• Stored energy hazards including large tire explosion blast radius and positioning
• CNG vehicle differences and why preplans matter
• Using monitors and stream reach to gain standoff and improve visibility
• Warehouse fire ventilation errors when water is not yet effective

Resources Mentioned:

Chula Vista Fire Report: Analysis of a Near Miss in a Warehouse Fire – California
https://doi.org/10.60752/102376.30402382

Lagrange Fire Report: Four Firefighters Burned in Residential House Fire – Georgia
https://dx.doi.org/10.54206/102376/GEKK4148

Lagrange Incident Video
https://training.fsri.org/resources/409/residential-fire-near-miss-in-lagrange-ga-incident-video

LaGrange Discussion Tool
https://training.fsri.org/resources/53/026-near-miss-lagrange-continuing-the-conversation

Online Course
https://training.fsri.org/course/105/residential-fire-near-miss-incident-in-lagrange-ga

Blue Card Lithium Ion Battery Fire SOG: https://bshifter.com/download/lithium-ion-battery-incident-sample-sog/

Order the 3rd Edition of Fire Command here:
https://bshifter.myshopify.com/products/new-fire-command-3rd-edition

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts:
https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, visit:
https://bshifter.com

Sign up for the B Shifter Buckslip, our free weekly newsletter:
https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/fmgs92N/Buckslip

Shop B Shifter:
https://bshifter.myshopify.com

About Dan:

Dr. Daniel Madrzykowski is a Senior Research Engineer with the UL Fire Safety Research Institute (FSRI) and one of the leading fire dynamics researchers in the world. His work has helped shape the modern fire service’s understanding of fire behavior, ventilation, wind-driven fires, exterior fire attack, and tactical decision-making on the fireground.

Over the past two decades, Dr. Madrzykowski has led and contributed to groundbreaking research focused on firefighter safety, fire spread, and modern building performance under fire conditions. His work has directly influenced operational tactics, training programs, and national conversations surrounding modern fire attack and command operations.

Dan has worked extensively with fire departments across the United States, translating complex fire science into practical, street-level applications firefighters and incident commanders can use every day. His research continues to play a major role in improving firefighter safety and customer outcomes in both residential and commercial fire incidents.

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This episode features Josh Blum, Chris Stewart and John Vance

We argue that firefighter safety on the fireground works best as a built-in system, not a lone safety officer trying to play catch-up outside the hazard zone. We connect real injury and fatality patterns to supervision, accountability, communications, and command decisions that match conditions in both residential and commercial buildings. 

In this episode:
• Strategic Decision-Making Workshop overview and how it builds repeatable decision reps 
• New continuing education module on the eight functions of command for technical rescue 
• New first responder firefighter online module for non-IC roles and better scene communications 
• Why “safety is a system” and why a single roaming safety officer cannot prevent all bad outcomes 
• Residential fire threats including collapse and severe thermal events 
• Commercial fire threats including disorientation, getting lost, and air management failures 
• How Blue Card embeds safety through task, tactical, and strategic supervision 
• Division boss and support officer pairing for accountability, work-rest cycles, and resource control 
• SOPs, training, and performance monitoring as the foundation of incident safety 
• NIOSH top contributing factors and why incident command owns the fix 
• Recommended next steps, including Fire Command, Command Safety, and division ops training 

Order the 3rd Edition of Fire Command here: https://bshifter.myshopify.com/products/new-fire-command-3rd-edition

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts: https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, check out bshifter.com

Sign up for the B Shifter Buckslip, our free weekly newsletter here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/fmgs92N/Buckslip

Shop B Shifter here: https://bshifter.myshopify.com

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This episode features Fire Chief (Ret.) Thomas Lakamp, Assistant Chief Scott Williams, Blue Card Program Director Josh Blum, and John Vance.

Thomas Lakamp, Fire Chief (Ret.), Fairfield (Ohio) Fire Department 

Chief Thomas Lakamp is the fire chief for the City of Fairfield, Ohio. He retired from the Cincinnati Fire Department as an assistant fire chief after almost 35 years of service. Tom holds an associate degree in Fire Science Technology and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Cincinnati. He also holds a master’s in homeland security from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif. Tom is a graduate of the National Fire Academy Executive Fire Officer Program and was formerly a Task Force Leader for FEMA Ohio Task Force 1—Urban Search and Rescue Team. He is currently the commissioner for the Hamilton County, Ohio—Region 6 USAR Team. 

Scott Williams, Assistant Fire Chief, Springdale (Ohio) Fire Department

Scott Williams has been in the fire service for 30 years and is a certified Ohio State Fire and Emergency Service Instructor II and a Live Fire Instructor. He is a Blue Card instructor, a national registered paramedic and a trained IAFF Peer Supporter. He has served the Springdale (Ohio) Fire Department for 22 years, holding the ranks of firefighter/paramedic, chief fire inspector and fire captain before his current position as the assistant fire chief. Chief Williams oversees fire department operations and develops the department’s SOGs. He is always looking to better himself and the fire service, supporting continuous improvement of fireground skills and operations through regular and consistent training. He is known for his honest approach and for teaching others through his first-hand experiences.

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We break down the Koch Foods plant in Fairfield, Ohio and the lessons that come with a 600,000 square foot commercial incident involving thermal fluid, ammonia, multiple alarms, and critical injuries. We share how a regional command system, disciplined big box tactics, and drone intelligence helped protect firefighters and save most of the facility.

We discuss:

• Setting the scene at Koch Foods and the early alarm upgrade to a high hazard response
• The report of a worker still inside and the rapid shift to defensive operations after untenable conditions
• How a delayed roof report revealed extreme fire involvement and changed tactics
• Thermal fluid flash conditions and why fire spread outran parts of the sprinkler system
• Water supply challenges, extended FDC pumping, and coordination with public utilities
• Managing ammonia tanks, cooling operations, and air monitoring as a hazmat problem
• Building a scalable command team with Blue Card, unified command, HazMat and EMA integration
• Using a regional drone team for situational awareness, leak location, and aerial placement
• Cross-county mutual aid that works because of shared SOGs, training standards, and linked CAD
• Why big box fires require abandoning residential tactics and slowing down before entry

Order the 3rd Edition of Fire Command here: https://bshifter.myshopify.com/products/new-fire-command-3rd-edition

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts: https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, check out bshifter.com

Sign up for the B Shifter Buckslip, our free weekly newsletter here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/fmgs92N/Buckslip

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Our guest this week is Battalion Chief Ryan Eldridge, Blue Card Lead Instructor

Ryan Eldridge is a dedicated fire service professional with a career spanning over three decades. He began his journey in 1995 when he joined the Las Vegas Fire and Rescue Explorer Program. Directly out of high school, he worked for the Las Vegas Bureau of Land Management office as a wildland firefighter on a hand crew. From 1997 to 2002, he served as a reserve firefighter in Boulder City, Nev. Ryan joined Las Vegas Fire and Rescue as a firefighter in 2002. Throughout his career, he pursued further education and training, becoming an Honor Guard member in 2003 and serving as co-commander; an LVF&R Technical Rescue Team member in 2005; and a certified paramedic in 2006. He served as an Executive Board member for Local 1285 and chaired the EMS Committee for over 10 years. In 2014, Ryan was promoted to captain, serving Battalion 1 at Station 10. Ryan was promoted to battalion chief in January 2024 and serves LVF&R Battalion 10, B-Shift. He considers being a Blue Card lead instructor an honor and is proud to represent Big Al’s legacy. Ryan has been married for 28 years and has two awesome young adult children.

We break down how firefighter air management actually works  from a morning bottle check to the moment you decide it’s time to leave. Ryan  shares practical ways to measure real SCBA work times and shows how company officers and incident commanders can build a rotation system that prevents low-air alarms inside IDLH.

• treating air management as a Mayday prevention skill
• starting the shift with maximum cylinder pressure and consistent SCBA checks
• setting clear low-air communication methods between firefighters and officers
• understanding personal air consumption and the round-trip ticket mindset
• running realistic air consumption drills and tracking amber-to-vibra time
• company officer ownership of crew air and exit timing
• IC tools like elapsed-time “pokes” and CAN reports to catch problems early
• using on-deck and three-deep layering to keep crews cycling safely
• reinforcing the rule that there is no harmless smoke

Download the Air Consumption Drill Here: https://bshifter.com/download/air-consumption-exercise/

Order the 3rd Edition of Fire Command here: https://bshifter.myshopify.com/products/new-fire-command-3rd-edition

This episode was recorded at the Alan V. Bruncini Command Training Center in Phoenix, AZ on April 16, 2026

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts: https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, check out bshifter.com

Sign up for the B Shifter Buckslip, our free weekly newsletter here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/fmgs92N/Buckslip

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This episode features Nick Brunacini and is hosted by John Vance.

We trace the origin of the Fire Command textbook from Alan Brunacini and why standardizing incident command changes everything from water-on-the-fire decisions to firefighter safety. We walk through what’s new in Fire Command 3 and how Blue Card training turns hard lessons into a repeatable system that works under pressure:

• why freelancing and arrival-order deployment fail under stress 
• how Alan Brunacini’s early fireground experiences shaped Fire Command 
• the shift from slide programs and VHS to a teachable command textbook 
• how Fire Command fits alongside NIMS and FEMA for different incident types 
• what changed from the first edition to the second edition and why “deployment” matters 
• how Southwest Supermarkets influenced command safety and tactical supervision 
• why third edition puts deployment first and expands it to service delivery and aid agreements 
• how embedded safety and accountability replace late-stage fixes 
• what fire science changes about offensive strategy and exterior water application 
• how the Mayday chapter is designed to work without rebuilding the system mid-incident 
Come By The Booth At FDIC, Hoosier Corridor Booth Number 13011

Order the 3rd Edition of Fire Command here: https://bshifter.myshopify.com/products/new-fire-command-3rd-edition

This episode was recorded at the Alan V. Bruncini Command Training Center in Phoenix, AZ on April 15, 2026

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts: https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, check out bshifter.com

Sign up for the B Shifter Buckslip, our free weekly newsletter here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/fmgs92N/Buckslip

Shop B Shifter here: https://bshifter.myshopify.com

All of our links here: https://linktr.ee/BShifter

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Commercial fires will expose weak decision-making—fast.

In this episode, we break down why commercial fire operations demand a completely different mindset than house fires—and how the Blue Card strategic decision-making model keeps us out of trouble.

We focus on size-up, realistic life safety expectations and the command choices that keep us from doing the wrong thing harder.

In this episode:
• Size, height and occupancy as your first strategic drivers
• Why residential tactics fail in large commercial compartments
• Reading sprinkler performance and recognizing when something is off
• Slowing down your size-up to avoid dangerous assumptions
• Confirming evacuation vs chasing unlikely rescues
• Standing up divisions early for better supervision and safety
• CAN reports, face-to-face coordination and radio discipline
• Knowing when to change the IAP and move to Plan B
• Air management, maximum depth and the round-trip ticket mindset
• Understanding capability limits—and where building systems must do the work

Buy “Timeless Tactical Truths from Alan Brunacini” at bshifter.com in our store for only $10!

This episode was recorded on April 9, 2026.

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts: https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, check out bshifter.com

Sign up for the B Shifter Buckslip, our free weekly newsletter here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/fmgs92N/Buckslip

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We share the April 2026 Blue Card rundown, from FDIC plans to major updates in training, online content, and continuing education. We dig into what’s changing in Fire Command, why objective after action reviews matter, and how we keep the whole response system stronger from dispatch to the fireground.

• FDIC plans in the Hoosier corridor and who you can meet at the booth
• Third edition Fire Command textbook release and why the update matters
• Blue Card Online update planned to align with the new textbook
• After Action Reporting system overview and what it measures
• How non-instructors get AAR access and how the subscription pricing works
• New traffic incident management CE module tied to apparatus positioning and safety
• New dispatcher CE on mass casualty support and catching missed Maydays
• ARFF program growth, new CE and simulations, and the August Phoenix class dates
• Train the Trainer schedule, workshop dates, and why early booking matters
• New command awareness program for firefighters, operators, and EMS partners
• Helmet wall update and how departments can contribute

Buy “Timeless Tactical Truths from Alan Brunacini” at bshifter.com in our store for only $10!

This episode was recorded on April 2, 2026.

For Waldorf University Blue Card credit and discounts: https://www.waldorf.edu/blue-card/

For free command and leadership support, check out bshifter.com

Sign up for the B Shifter Buckslip, our free weekly newsletter here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/fmgs92N/Buckslip

Shop B Shifter here: https://bshifter.myshopify.com

All of our links here: https://linktr.ee/BShifter

Please remember to share with a friend. Like and subscribe if you can. That helps us out!