Tactical Decision Making Essay

Whether the on-site team or the incident commander elects to go offensive or defensive in fighting a fire is so important that it would seem that the science, art, and even math of the issues would be well determined by now. As it turns out, however, that is not the case (Stephens, nd, p. 6). Though there does seem to be some level of fundamental agreement about what offensive and defensive tactics are in practice, it can be difficult to distinguish them in the midst of an attack against a fire, commercial or residential. Yet, it is still mostly accepted that the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) got it right when their commentators affirmed that "Offensive and defensive strategies should never be conducted in the same building at the same time" (Klaene & Sanders, 2008, para 8). Fire engineers and firefighters generally assume that offensive maneuvers come first and then defensive ones follow. The real debate centers on when or if a transition from one to the other should take place.

Inherently the fire service operates in high-risk environments to facilitate the role of preserving life safety and property conservation. How these incidents are managed and safeguarded by our administration

Similarly, fire departments utilize performance measures in the same manner. In the Fire Service, the performance measure is based on protection outcomes that include fires prevented and human life and property saved. Additionally, the role of the fire department extends beyond fires; it also includes emergency medical care, hazardous material’s technical rescues and other emergency and non-emergency calls (Flynn, 2009, p. 6).

NFPA and National Fire Protection Association are registered trademarks of the National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, Massachusetts 02169. Copyright © 2008 National Fire Protection Association®. All Rights Reserved. This edition of NFPA 1006, Standard for Technical Rescuer Professional Qualifications, was prepared by the Technical Committee on Rescue Technician Professional Qualifications and released by the Technical Correlating Committee on Professional Qualifications. It was issued by the Standards Council on December 11, 2007, with an effective date of December 31, 2007, and supersedes all previous editions. This edition of NFPA 1006 was

This paper will look at NFPA 472 and what it does to protect the FireFighter. NFPA 472 is a very interesting standard as it is the standard of competence of responders to hazardous materials/weapons of mass destruction incidents. The purpose of this standard is to specify the minimum effectiveness for those who respond to hazardous materials and WMD incidents and necessary for a risk based response to the incidents. Hazmat situations can be a very tricky situation with all the recently introduced acids and gasoline of the current era. NFPA 472 keeps the FireFighter safe and effective on duty.

As leaders, Army officers need to be able to make decisions on a daily, even hourly basis. While the Military Decision Making Process (MDMP) is the typical method for operational decisions, routine issues often require less regimented methods such as Army Problem Solving . Our point of view, the information at hand, the concepts we base our views upon, our personal implications and assumptions, and the purposes that motivate our need for decisions are all critical in determining the ultimate effectiveness of this problem solving process. Drs. Paul and Elder enumerate the “Elements of Thought” which include and incorporate supporting traits and standards. Through proper integration of these accepted standards into our thought processes can and does significantly improve our overall use of the Army Problem Solving process by enhancing our critical thinking skills and our ability to think rationally.

Natural and man-made disasters have increased in the past decade, and due to these changes, Emergency Managers had to make drastic changes in order to improve the way first responders operate in a disaster area.

Applying the correct abstractions and generalizations to problems is essential to my position within my department. As a station captain in the Waco Fire Department, on the department's safety committee, and equipment committee; I assist in solving many problems that arise in the department. Serving on the equipment committee, we are expected to find solutions for the various needs of the department. As a member of the safety committee, we must look at ways to improve safe operations for department personnel and civilians.

The safety of my crew is a responsibility that I take personally. I will utilize any and every tool available to me to ensure that they go home safely. Many fire fighters have been seriously hurt or killed do to unrecognized flashover conditions. Under appropriate circumstances, a “transitional attack” can be

If I was in command on a steel building fire in my area and the crews inside advised me that it was getting to hot in there, even with crews outside trying to cool the steel. A steel building holds more heat than wood frame construction. Wood burns through faster than steel to collapse a building. Temperature above 1,000 degrees F, the steel tends to soften and fail in a fire. In recent test by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) E-119 Fireproofing steel columns, the columns fails when a temperature of 1,200 degrees F is exceeded at one point or 1,000 degrees F is exceeded on the average in the column. That’s why I would pull all my firefighters out and

In any rescue operation large or small, a number of agencies have to work together and respond quickly and efficiently to minimise the potential for loss of life. These agencies will face a series of challenges on the ground which will require immediate and concise evaluation. Regardless of the nature of the emergency, clear communication between agencies is imperative to obtain a favourable outcome.

In the article “Know the Smells and Warning Bells of WMD”, the author, John Linstrom’s principal point is that the fire departments should better prepare to respond to incidents involving weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Historically, explosive or WMD incidents were handled by law enforcement, while fire assumed a support role, but with increased terroristic occurrences, firefighters have been finding themselves in situations where they have been first on scene. Mr. Linstrom stresses that firefighters need to be mindful of the threat of explosives and WMD’s when responding to incidents (Linstrom, 2004). Firefighters need to familiarize themselves with terrorist tactics and beware of potential high-risk

The MDMP is the Army's solution to decision-making and assists the commander and staff in developing a plan and estimates. The MDMP is analytical and detailed through all levels. The commander decides the procedures to use in each instance, his plan hinges on clear visualization, and he uses the entire staff to make his plan. The steps in the MDMP are the following:

From the moment that units leave the station and respond to an emergency, to the time they arrive on scene personnel in particular leaders, have to make quick and critical decisions. Many responders in the fire service and in EMS believe that experience and intuition in decision-making in an emergency situation is valuable for many reasons. At large-scale incidents such as this event, experience and intuition in decision-making is crucial in the first few minutes of an emergency, and can either quickly resolve or exacerbate the situation. Additionally, experience and intuition in decision-making is important to responders because the decisions made can impact the fate of many lives during an emergency. Additionally, responders want to have

* In The missing piece of NIMS: Teaching incident commanders how to function in the edge of Chaos, the author notes that first responders have to deal with a disaster situation already unfolding, and not “all the pieces fit together nicely.” The author writes about the Five Tenets of Working in Chaos.