Fire Engineering Podcast Network

In this episode of Point of Origin, hosts Billy Hux and Bobby Drake speak with Steve Weissman, cancer survivor and Virginia state director of the Firefighter Cancer Support Network. They discuss occupational cancer risks for firefighters, with Weissman detailing how modern, synthetic materials create persistent carcinogens and volatile compounds that can linger for days after a fire, why investigators remain exposed even without turnout gear, and the importance of documentation for research and workers' compensation. They outline low-cost controls: a mandatory PPE program, on-scene documentation, swapping to clean gear, respiratory protection, and routine health screenings.

Firefighters absorb carcinogens on every call and even during training. In this episode of The Training Officer, host Dave McGlynn sits down with Tara Cornett, founder of FLAME Natural Decon, to explain the science behind effective skin decontamination, why regular soap often fails, and how a blended activated‑charcoal formula pulls contaminants from pores. Cornett walks through product development, lab verification, and practical adoption.

Battalion chiefs and company officers: station rounds aren’t optional. They’re mission critical. In this episode of The Command Post, hosts Rick Lasky and John Salka break down why chiefs must leave the office, visit firehouses, and engage crews. They cover real-time readiness checks, rumor control, rapid problem-solving, informal training, morale and accountability, targeted roll calls, and better operational decisions. Warning against micromanaging, they explain how to balance presence with trust.

In this episode of Two Vollies and a Guest, hosts Jerry Knapp and Tim Pillsworth get to the grit of fireground tactics with Brian Brush. The training chief of the Midwest City (OK) Fire Department and Fire Engineering board member shares critical insights. The discussion covers the realities of modern search operations, highlighting victim location patterns, and how pet behavior can guide searchers to trapped occupants. Brush's work proves that data, not just tradition, should drive department training.

In episode 100 of The Professional Volunteer Fire Department, host Tom Merrill speaks with Brandon Fletcher, chief of the Gilt Edge (TN) Fire Department, about building and sustaining a professional rural volunteer department. They discuss practical leadership, recruiting and retaining younger members, holding people accountable, and in-house and hybrid training. Fletcher shares how small departments can improve response times, develop training pathways, and ways to prioritize quality over roster size.

Capability is what the command team knows how to do. Capacity is whether the system has enough trained people, structure, trust, and communication discipline to actually do it under pressure. This episode of Command Show, hosted by Anthony Kastros and Brian Brush, reveals the reasons why fireground success requires both.
 
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On this episode of Fireground Strategies, hosts Anthony Avillo and Jim Duffy break down the 'W' from John Norman’s "COAL WAS WEALTH" size‑up acronym and translate it into practical tactics for extreme heat, storms, and flash flooding. They cover preincident planning and hot weather policies; front‑loading alarms and one‑bottle/short‑shift strategies; crew rotations; on‑scene rehab; recognition of heat illness; generator and solar power hazards; live wire risks in windstorms; water supply; and mutual‑aid challenges during storms. They also explain FDIC instructor selection and encourage submitting road‑tested classes.

In this episode of Perspectives on Leadership, host Steven Shaw speaks with Retired Battalion Chief Andy Starnes. They unpack how thermal imaging became a mission, not just a tool in the fire service, and how relationships and critical thinking shape the fire service. Starnes details his start in volunteer firehouses, an injury that led to the launch of Insight Fire Training, and how sharing hard-earned tactics saves lives. They tackle behavioral health, the cost of social media negativity, toxic leadership, and saying "yes" to the right things. 

In this episode of In the Books, host David Rhodes sits down with respected fire service leaders and co-authors Sean Gray and PJ Norwood to discuss the newly released second edition of The Evolving Fireground: Research-Based Tactics.
From the groundbreaking UL FSRI fire research studies to modern fireground decision-making, this conversation explores how evidence-based tactics continue to shape the fire service. Gray and Norwood break down the major updates in the new edition, including expanded content on search operations, water mapping, air entrainment, coordinated ventilation, basement fires, emerging technologies, and the practical application of fire dynamics research.
The discussion takes a deep dive into:
✅ Coordinated ventilation and modern fire dynamics✅ Search tactics backed by research and real-world experience✅ Water application, transitional attack, and getting water on the fire quickly✅ Staffing considerations and tactical prioritization✅ Legacy vs. modern fire environments✅ Basement fire operations and decision-making✅ How departments can turn research into actionable training and operational doctrine
Whether you're a firefighter, company officer, instructor, chief officer, or fire service student, this episode provides valuable insight into understanding the "why" behind modern firefighting tactics and how research can improve firefighter and civilian safety.
📘 The Evolving Fireground: Research-Based Tactics (2nd Edition) is designed not only as a reference book but also as a training and promotional resource, complete with chapter objectives, practice questions, and the latest fire research findings.
 
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In this episode of Fire Service Data and Tech Talk, host Eddie Buchanan welcomes Division Chief Tom Marvel and Maura "Mo" Shea, both from the Carmel (IN) Fire Department, and Michael Oldham from Texas A&M to discuss innovative projects that are currently underway. During their discussion, the panel unpacks two cutting-edge projects reshaping firefighter safety and wellness and talk about a live trial of the C-THRU Navigator from Qwake Technologies, which enables firefighters to work through smoke. The conversation also detail a comprehensive sleep study that compares multiple firefighter shift schedules.
 
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