The face of the volunteer fire service has changed dramatically since my days back in the mid-1970’s and early 1980’s. The day-to-day dynamics of our society have changed dramatically and made it more challenging for people to be able to volunteer time; not just to a volunteer fire department, but also to houses of worship, civic organizations, etc. Yet, with over 70% of America being protected by volunteer or paid-on-call firefighters, we still have excellent leaders. My guest today is Chief Brandon Fletcher of the Gilt Edge FD in western Tennessee. Chief Fletcher is dedicated to his community and his firefighters. His department has automatic mutual aid agreements with surrounding departments for certain types of calls. This takes a strong and confident leader to establish this type of agreement. We discuss recruitment and retention, training, challenges and more! And, you will hear more from him and you will able to learn from him, as well!You can watch us on our YouTube® channel, “5-Alarm Task Force Corp.” or tune in to our podcast via your favorite podcast platform or visit our website at https://www.5-AlarmTaskForceCorp.org and scroll down the homepage to listen in. To make a donation towards our 2022 Campaign goal to raise $12,000 to help our Brothers & Sisters, and/or their families in dire need, please visit our homepage! Thank you.

Episode 192: Episode 6-20 – Chief Brandon Fletcher – Leadership, Ownership & Volunteers

News and Issues For Today's First Responders. We provide some of the top mentors, leaders and members of the Fire Service from the U.S. and Canada.

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Training

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Government

Our guest, Jack Sullivan is the Director of Training for the Responder Safety Institute and has been with us several times over the years. On this occasion Jack addresses the tragically high number of “Struck by,” incidents, where a firefighter, law enforcement officer, ambulance team, recovery (tow) operator, Road Ranger and even innocent good-Samaritans are injured or killed, most due to inattentive drivers, from people on bikes to large tractor trailers. We, who are First Responders much work to educate our members to always maintain, “Situational Awareness” and our heads on a “swivel” in our efforts to bring more safety to our jobs.Jack also explains to us the heavy need for more TIM (Traffic Incident Management) Teams around the country. These teams review past response incidences and how they could have been handled and feed that info to the responder agencies. They also conduct training with various First Responder agencies to help their members learn how to be safer and how to include those findings with those involved. For more information, here are several links:https://www.respondersafety.com/ - Main Website with news and resources andhttps://learning.respondersafety.com/ - Responder Safety Learning Networkhttps://www.ReportStruckBy.com – For reporting struck by vehicle incidents involving emergency responders at incident scenes.https://www.enddd.org/ - End Distracted Driving resourcesJack Sullivan CSPDir. Of Training, Emergency Responder Safety Institute www.ResponderSafety.com Cell: 804-514-3766ResponderSafety@GMail.comAnd you can always reach us at Dalmatprod@Outlook.com

Episode 236: Episode 8-18 – Jack Sulivan – Responder Safety Institute

If you have been or still are a firefighter and you have a few years (or more) under your belt, you have probably had a couple of “workers” that gave you a bit more than an east knockdown.Initially then, the title of Brad’s book is somewhat incomplete. For the full title of his new book is, “The Flames of Fire – Firefighting Amidst the Explosions!” A bit more intriguing than the first look. Brad has done it all, from being a 17-year-old “probie” to an officer, an instructor and a Fire Inspector. Some of the stories he shares with us will generate the “pucker factor,” no matter how much experience you have. We also discuss to of the greatest leaders/teachers in the Fire Service, the late Chief Alan V. Brunacini or “Chief Bruno” as he loved to be called and, the late Chief Bobby Halton. We discuss the philosophies about this job that they both loved and how their simple explanations and recommendations of how we should interact with our victims, made everyone who listened and functioned as they posited, made so many incidents just a little less scary and at the same time, made us better firefighters, career, volunteer, paid-on-call or WUI.You will find the video versions of our podcasts on our YouTube® Channel, 5-Alarm Task Force Corp.” And our audio version can be found on our homepage of www.5-AlarmTaskForceCorp.org or your favorite podcast platform.And please don’t forget to leave a brief review on your podcast platform page for “5-Alarm Task Force!” and 5-Alarm Task Force Corp. on YouTube®.Stay Safe & Stay Well and Let’s Make Sure Everyone Goes Home!

Episode 235: Episode 8-17 -Inspector Bradley R. Davidson – “The Flames of Fire”

There is no doubt that Asst. Chief Jacob Johnson has had a well-experienced path in the fire service, starting as a 15-year-old “water boy” and “hanger-on” to learn as much about firefighting as possible. It wasn’t long before Jacob was climbing the department’s “ladder,” through the Katy Fire Department for approximately seven years. Then, the Pearland Fire Dept. started its “Growth Spurt” and Jacob decided that it was a place where one can learn, practice and drill to become a better firefighter and eventually, an officer. And after nearly 18 years, he was recently appointed as the Assistant Chief for Administrative Services with the Pearland Fire Dept. In our recent interview, Jacob and I discussed the multi-personnel “MAYDAY” occurrence in October 2023 at a working structure fire. One firefighter was severely injured, yet his colleagues rescued him in the nick of time. If you have or have not had a multi-faceted LODI or LODD in your department or even under your command, Chief Johnson shares insights that we all can learn and perhaps, even save a life with what you see/hear when you watch/listen.Finally, the Pearland Fire Department has remained above many others by the targeted membership campaign the Department uses. As our mutual friend, Chief Tony Correia teaches, “It should be called “Retention & Recruitment!” Why? Because if we cannot keep our current members, how can we expect to attract new blood?” Listen as Chief Johnson shares the department’s goal to not only keep their crews they have now, but with a sixth station recently opening, to fill the shifts of various apparatus in that firehouse. As Chief Johnson teaches to his rookies, “Be a Nice Human Being.”You will find the video versions of our podcasts on our YouTube® Channel, 5-Alarm Task Force Corp.” And our audio version can be found on our homepage of www.5-AlarmTaskForceCorp.org or your favorite podcast platform.And please don’t forget to leave a brief review on the Platform page for “5-Alarm Task Force!”

Episode 234: Episode 8-16 – Asst. Chief Jacob Johnson – A 4-Person LODI & Successful Retention & Recruitment Campaign

David Wiklanski is an Engine Company Captain for an urban fire department in New Jersey. He has over twenty years in Emergency Services. Wiklanski is a speaker and writer, with most of his presentations on behavioral health, in addition to Suicide Terrorism. His mission is to end the stigma associated with mental health and to connect responders with the available resources to not only survive but thrive in their careers.  He has contributed articles to Fire Engineering, Firehouse Magazine, Firehouse Tribune, and Firefighting in Canada. His first book: Suicide Bombers, Understanding Suicide Terrorism from a Cultural and Memetic perspective is available online and he is currently working on authoring his next book.  Wiklanski has an MA in Behavioral Sciences-Human Behavior and Organizational Psychology from Kean University. He has been an adjunct professor at Kean University for the past 17 years. Wiklanski holds certifications as a Fire Instructor II, EMT Instructor, and NJ Certified Emergency Manager (NJCEM).  He is a Behavioral Health Specialist for the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) working on projects such as the Taking Care of Our Own (TCOOO) course and the Uniformed Peer Support Program. He was recently hired as the Program Manager for the Vulnerability Assessment Program (VAP), an online risk assessment tool.   Here are a few links to the programs that we discussed. Also, if you can list my foundation email (DWiklanski@firehero.org) for anything NFFF-related. Taking Care of Our Own: https://www.firehero.org/fire-service-resources/taking-care-of-our-own/Vulnerability Assessment Program: https://firevap.org/

Episode 233: Episode 8-15 – Capt. David Wiklanski – “The Firefighter Behavioral Health Initiative”

If you’re a firefighter and you have been on social media oh, let’s say some time around 2011, you could not help but notice the frequent posts from The Firehouse Tribune. Then, it was a couple of firefighters posting some key ideas, facts, tactics, health, etc. Recently, Nic, the founder and editor of The Firehouse Tribune has raised the level the “Tribune.” It began with Nic writing his first book, “The 5-Tool Firefighter.” Then, he authored a workbook to accompany the “5-Tool Firefighter, and both have been big sellers. Firefighters from all around the U.S. and a foreign country or two were buying the books and putting into their daily lives. Just a short while ago, Nic added “The 5-Tool Firefighter Podcast!”More recently, Tom connected with Chief Tom Marchiano of the Chester Fire Department, just north of NYC. Working together they have added another popular element, “Station Talk,” manned by both Chief Marchiano and Nic.Tune in and listen to these two “gentlemen firefighters” and their “why’s” and “wherefores’” behind The Firehouse Tribune!

Episode 192: Episode 6-20 – Chief Brandon Fletcher – Leadership, Ownership & Volunteers

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