Firefighter training drill by Forest Reeder
Firefighter fatality and injury studies have identified several areas of operations on the interior of a firefighting operation as being highly hazardous and requiring special attention. Activities during interior operations must be closely monitored by fire officers and firefighters alike. Risk-benefit analysis coupled to building construction and fire behavior must be matched to the strategy and tactics for the operation.
Common areas where firefighters get into trouble while operating on the interior have been advancing hoselines, performing search, fire suppression, and overhaul. Key parts of these analysis reveal that accountability by the company officer for the crews’ actions, air supply, whereabouts and their working environment are major factors that improve the ability to operate safely while inside the fire building. Officers must act as supervisors at all incidents and must take their responsibilities seriously and aggressively. We must do what we must do, however, we must do it as safely as we can. Key behaviors in this area are accountability, communications, and continual size-up. In this firefighter training drill, discuss these operational areas and decision-making responsibilities. Use the sample problems and hazards to start your discussion on this topic.
Download this firefighter training drill as a PDF HERE.
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Forest Reeder began his fire service career in 1978 and retired as fire chief of the Tinley Park (IL) Fire Department in 2021. He has worked extensively in the areas of instruction, firefighter safety, and officer development and earned his Master of Science Degree in Public Safety Administration in 2004. He is the author of Fire Department Incident Safety Officer 4th edition (2025) and co-author of Fire Service Instructor Principles and Practices, now in its 3rd edition. Forest presents nationally on fire service leadership, safety, and instructor development. He was inducted into the Moraine Valley Community College Alumni Hall of Fame in 2020 and awarded the Distinguished Alumnus award in 2021. In 2008, he received the ISFSI George D. Post Instructor of the Year, considered to be the highest recognition for fire service instructors in the nation.
