LYNNFIELD — The Lynnfield Fire Department, on behalf of four other departments that include Danvers, Middleton, North Reading and Peabody, has been awarded $708,818 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant program (AFG).
The grant will be used to implement a comprehensive incident command training program. To achieve this training, the Lynnfield Fire Department will adopt the nationally recognized Blue Card Incident Command Training and Certification Program (Blue Card).
“All the participating departments share the mission of providing life safety and a commitment to firefighter safety,” said Fire Chief/Emergency Management Director Glenn Davis. “Enhanced training in incident management would improve upon both goals. Since the principles of ICS are utilized at all incidents, this training will improve our overall efficiency daily. The Blue Card training program will help mitigate a significant skill gap at the command level that every fire department is experiencing. As the number of structure fires continues to decline, so does the experience level of our fire officers and firefighters. It is well known that fire officers rely on intuitive, cue-based decision making when faced with dynamic, time- sensitive situations. Officers draw from their past experiences to select and implement an action plan, often with little or no conscious thought.”
Davis said, “The decrease in fire activity has resulted in an experience gap among newly promoted company and chief officers.”
“The lack of experience makes it difficult to recognize cues and select appropriate tactics which can lead to improper risk assessment and ineffective incident command,” said Davis. “Completing this training will improve the confidence and decision-making skills of our company and chief officers, which will benefit the citizens we serve and the firefighters they lead daily. The Blue Card program is an all-hazards training curriculum. The command principles and simulation software can be tailored to address incidents involving hazardous materials, technical rescue and special operations, mass casualty and firefighter emergencies. Implementing this program will improve the response capabilities of all participating agencies for a wide range of incident types, resulting in enhancements to life safety and reductions in property loss. While the primary goal is to build command competency, participation in the Blue Card program will have additional system-wide benefits for our personnel and organizations.”
Davis said completion of this training would meet the officer training requirements of the Insurance Services Office (ISO) and a sizable portion of the company training requirement, which could lead to an improvement in the ISO ratings of several participating departments.
“The ISO Fire Score is a rating that determines how well the fire department can protect your community and home,” said Davis. “Insurance companies use the score to help set home insurance rates.”
