ELEC-404: Firefighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP): Mayday, Mayday, Mayday! Does Anyone Hear Me? The Importance of the Emergency Activation Button
The NIOSH Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP) conducts independent investigations of firefighter line-of-duty deaths (LODD). This presentation will provide an overview of the FFFIPP and the resources that it provides to the fire service. Recent investigations have revealed several contributing factors that involve radio communications including equipment failures, lack of training, and lack of policies & procedures. A recent example of this involved the LODD of a captain at a large residential structure where issues with the use of the Emergency Activation Button (EAB) was a contributing factor. The captain did not activate his EAB button on his portable radio prior to calling his Mayday. Radio rejection logs from the captain’s radio indicated his transmissions were rejected 17 times. This presentation will cover the most common contributing factors related to radio communications and the recommendations to address them.
Learning Objectives:
The participant will gain an understanding of the NIOSH Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program and how this program benefits the fire service.
The participant will recognize the importance, purpose, and function of the EAB during a Mayday and why it must be incorporated into training and policies & procedures.
The participant will be able to identify key components and capabilities of their fire departments communication system and will be able to recommend improvements within their departments related to training and use of portable radios in Mayday situations.