Flow Parameters: Intermittent Cooling vs. Continuous Cooling
Ray McCormack compares 'Stop and Flow' and 'Flow and Move' techniques for application of water during fire attack.
Tactical Safety
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Performing a 361
Firefighters can enhance their size-up by considering alternative entry points for hoseline deployment, says Ray McCormack.
Researchers Use ‘Waterfall Effect’ to Smother Fire
Departments that prefer to apply their streams from the exterior for fire attack may have a new trick up their sleeve, writes Ray McCormack.
Tactical Safety: Nothing Showing
The size-up term "nothing showing" has been used for years in most parts of the country for first-arriving fire officers and has become part of the extinguishment culture. Ray McCormack argues the time has come to stop using it.
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Tactical Safety for Firefighters: Avoiding Hot Water
Ray McCormack addresses the common narrative fallacy that says firefighters get too close to the fire before applying water.
Tactical Safety: Missing Something
Do some firefighters actually wish to get injured or killed on the fireground? Read commentary from Ray McCormack.
Tactical Safety: Back to the Future
Those who clamor for early adoption of new firefighting tactics have to realize that people's lives will hang in the balance and not every test burn will end up successful, Ray McCormack writes.
Tactical Safety: A Prevention Message
The fire service needs to give itself credit for the successful operations and protection of lives and property that happen every day, Ray McCormack writes.
Tactical Safety: Risk a Lot, Save a Lot
When a firefighter is faced with a decision to risk their life to try and save another life, they have reached the pinnacle of what being a firefighter is all about, Ray McCormack writes.
Staffing Reach
We hear a lot about staffing in the fire service. Ray McCormack says the main consideration is whether your staffing is adequate for the majority of your fire attack incidents.
DICERS-VO for Extinguishment
DICERS is a fire extinguishment model utilizing interior tactics to extinguish fires. Ray McCormack explains the individual aspects of this firefighting acronym.
Tactical Safety: It’s About Nozzle Reach, Not Stream Reach
Stream reach does not equal extinguishment, Ray McCormack writes, rather nozzle reach equals extinguishment.