At FDIC 2004, you will find those attractions that traditionally have made the FDIC the premier learning and networking experience for the fire/emergency service. And, you will find also new opportunities for learning the skills, strategies, and insights you need to meet the challenges awaiting you in this world of uncertainty and heightened dangers. These learning opportunities are represented in brand new and “retooled” Hands-On Training (H.O.T.) classes and workshops, classroom and big room sessions, and personal presentations by “front-line” warriors and commanders ready to share their expertise and lessons learned from catastrophic events that have become commonplace in today’s world.
THE “TRADITIONAL”
In 2004, as always, FDIC will be filled with tributes, addresses, and presentations that provoke, motivate, and inspire. Wednesday’s General Session, for example, will open with a moving tribute to the 111 firefighters who made the ultimate sacrifice in 2003. Also, all hearts and eyes will be focused on the recipient of the 2004 Ray Downey Courage and Valor Award—a firefighter selected by his peers who went above and beyond the call of duty. And, Dr. Denis Onieal, superintendent of the National Fire Academy, will challenge and inspire you to “make a difference.”
Keynote speakers bring into the fire and emergency services context major incidents and events that illustrate just how far we may be called to walk in our quest to protect our communities and our country.
- U.S. Marine Captain Jason Frei will recount the compelling events of March 25, 2003, when his HumveeT door was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade in Iraq.
- You will be drawn into the California Cedar Fire conflagration as U.S. Forest Service/Bureau of Land Management Type 1 Comm-ander Mike Lohrey and Deputy Chief of Operations Jeff Fraser, San Diego City (CA) Fire Department, relate their experiences and lessons learned in the largest wildfire in California’s history. More than 4,275 people—including 43 fire crews and 605 management personnel—responded to the Cedar fire with 179 engines, four helicopters, 34 bulldozers, and 56 water tenders. The fire claimed 15 lives and destroyed 2,232 residences, 22 commercial properties, 566 out buildings, and 148 vehicles.
- Dr. Amy K. Donahue, a firefighter/EMT and senior advisor to the Administrator for Homeland Security National Aeronautics Space Administration Space Shuttle Columbia, will skillfully articulate the operational goals and the important lessons relative to coordinating the space shuttle Columbia recovery operation, which involved multiple agencies. More than 450 organizations responded with personnel, supplies, and equipment; more than 25,000 personnel were involved in the response and recovery effort.
- Get aboard the emotional roller coaster powered by Dr. Burt Clark, renown motivational speaker and executive fire officer. On this “ride”—a series of vignettes about people who “see the light” and change history—you will laugh, cry, commiserate, and rejoice.
AMONG THE EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES …
NEW! “fireEMS Conference within a Conference”
Making its debut, the “fireEMS Conference within a Conference” is a roll-up-your-sleeves symposium developed by the technical editors and advisors of fireEMS that addresses critical response and management issues. Six courses are offered over a two-day period. l Who Moved My Hose? Change Management in Fire EMS. How to survive and thrive amid the organizational and political winds that sweep through the EMS work environment from time to time. l Personal Liability on the Job. You find that you will be the defendant in a courtroom. What can you do to protect yourself? What can you do to prevent this from happening? l EMS Expanded Practice. EMS departments are making themselves even more indispensable to their communities by adding services that you might not have thought of. Learn how expanded practice can serve your city, raise your profile, and bring in some money, too. l FireEMS and Homeland Security. Fire-based EMS is on the front line of homeland security. This wide-ranging session covers the types of situations you may encounter and will help you protect yourself and the community you serve. l Training the Trainers. Although education and training are related and are vital to successful instructional programs, their objectives are different. Learn how to effectively incorporate both in your department’s program. l WMD Personal Readiness. Are you ready for chemical weapons and bioterrorism response? Learn how to prepare for responses involving these silent killers.
Hands-On Training (H.O.T.) Program
The H.O.T. program is still a major drawing card for FDIC—and, it gets even better!
US&R Program: AN FDIC EXCLUSIVE! Three FEMA modules will be offered Wednesday through Friday. Instructors are highly qualified, experienced members of FEMA US&R teams. Because of intensive equipment, logistics, and instructional demands for this course, it’s priced differently than the other H.O.T. Evolutions.
The year’s program also includes a few refinements: l Truck Company Operations has been expanded to five evolutions. l Ground Ladders and Tower/Aerial Operations are now separate four-hour evolutions. l RIT Combat Drills and Survival in the Hot Zone will have expanded class capacities. The Hot Zone curricula now includes a biochem component. l The three Engine Company Operations evolutions have been combined into one eight-hour class to maximize the learning experience.
NEW! Eight-hour workshop Bombs and Buildings on Monday and Tuesday. Increase your understanding of how fire and explosions create abnormal building conditions and the challenges these forces of destruction present. Presented by structural engineers Hollice Stone and John Flynn. l NEW! The 16-hour, Crisis Management for Large-Scale Incidents highly interactive course is led by Jim Ellson, retired Fire Department of New York captain/special operations officer and former deputy director of the New York City Mayor’s Office of Emergency Management. l The 16-hour Training Officer Development class is a must for new training officers who want “to hit the ground running.” Federal mandates and NFPA standards are addressed. l NEW! Apparatus Specifications, presented by Battalion Chief (Ret.) Bill Peters, will be back this year (by popular demand). l NEW! Eight-hour Fitness and Wellness Train-the-Trainer. l Fire Prevention: The “So You Have to Inspect” series adds new dimensions to the multifaceted world of fire code enforcement with Means of Egress Concepts and Requirements and Sprinkler System and Fire Pumps.
Classroon Sessions
Choose from 130 subject areas that include training, building reconnaissance, suppression, rescue, EMS, management, arson, fire protection, health and safety, fire education, hazardous materials, aircraft/rescue, RIT, and bioterrorism.
Responder safety is highlighted, as the fire service strives to understand and decrease the number of cardiovascular-related line-of-duty deaths, which have been increasing in recent years.
“Fire departments have used automatic defibrillators for 15 years but have not stopped sudden cardiac deaths on the job,” observes Bill Boehm, who will present The Cardiac Tool Kit. “The time is now,” he asserts. The “tool kit” must be promptly deployed if a firefighter goes down, he urges. “The success window is three to five minutes. We can’t delay for EMS, even if they are on the scene.”
Straight Talk About Stress for Emergency Responders, presented by Mike McEvoy, Ph.D., RN, CCRN, REMT-P, EMS coordinator for Saratoga County, New York, and professor surgery/critical care medicine at Albany Medical College, presents strategies for reducing stress and maintaining happiness at work and home and for heightening competence on the job.
Learn how to recognize an infectious patient and protect yourself, your department, and your family from the growing threat of infectious diseases in Bioterror: Are You Ready? also presented by Mike Mc-Evoy.