From the Publishers Desk
Villella Tells of Long Desire To Be Involved in Fire Training
The interview on page 50 with Fred J. Villella, FEMA associate director of training and education who has set up shop at Emmitsburg, should answer any doubts about the Reagan administration’s intent not only to maintain the National Fire Academy, but also to expand the outreach program.
Although he has been on the Emmitsburg campus only a few months, Villella exhibits a surprising depth of knowledge about the fire service. While being interviewed, he mentioned to Dick Sylvia that he had a longtime yearning to become involved in fire service training. As proof of this, he pointed out that a deputy fire chief had recently been added to the staff of the California Specialized Training Institute. Villella explained that this carried out recommendation long urged not only by him, but also by his boss at the institute, Louis O. Guiffrida, who is still his boss as director of FEMA.
During the last 20 years, we’ve heard of a number of surveys of fire departments and the repercussions that occurred because the fire service felt it had little effect on the results. Some surveys left the impression that they did little more than provide documentation for objectives established by the municipal administrations that hired the consultants.
A survey of fire protection in Minneapolis was done by John T. O’Hagan, former commissioner and chief of department in New York City, with a different approach. Chief Clarence Nimmerfroh and his officers actively participated in the survey and in developing and implementing recommendations to improve their department. The story of how this was done is on page 36.
Incidentally, O’Hagan is not limiting his talents to consultation work. Last July, he spent two days in Little Rock, Ark., as an instructor for the United States Fire Administration. His course on high-rise fire fighting attracted 120 students from 10 states. In addition to discussing strategy and tactics pertinent to what once were called skyscrapers, O’Hagan also explained risk analysis and the design of buildings in relation to the fire problems encountered.
Fortunately, there have been relatively few serious fires in high-rises compared to the fire record of other types of buildings. However, the potential exists wherever there are highrises, and this means that chief officers have to learn to fight high-rise fires in the classroom rather than from a combination of classroom study and day-to-day experience. We would be surprised if any chief officer has been in command at more than one or two serious high-rise fires.
