INDUSTRIAL FIREFIGHTERS protect our employees, industries, community, and brands. They are critical for any organization’s emergency response plan. Understanding the necessity for protecting an organization’s people, property, and brand image is not enough to successfully implement an industrial firefighting program. Management must also understand the rules and regulations that define the capabilities of an industrial fire department.
Like any firefighting service, industrial fire departments are held to minimum standards. The two most prominent fire protection standards are the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 1910.156 Industrial Fire Brigade Standard and National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 600, Standard on Facility Fire Brigades.2 In addition to describing the minimum controls necessary for industrial fire departments, they also outline the training requirements each industrial firefighter should undergo.
Both standards include background information on the purpose behind such rigorous training, explanations on the purpose of protective clothing, and adescription of respiratory protection, along with its vital role in fire safety. OSHA has not updated its fire brigade standard since it was published in 1980. This standard has recently undergone a total rewrite and is in draft form (as of November 2024).
The proposed standard is a comprehensive emergency response standard with a focus on reducing fatalities in the emergency services and improving the safety, health, and wellness of emergency first responders. The proposed standard can be reviewed at the Federal Register Web site. The Technical Committee on Loss Prevention Procedures and Practices recently completed its own revision of NFPA 600 to make it clearer and more straightforward.
Types of Fire Brigades
Industrial fire departments have two primary types of fire brigades: full-time dedicated industrial firefighters and emergency response teams (ERTs). Both fall under the industrial firefighting umbrella and are trained to maintain safety, stabilize incidents, conserve property, and protect organizations from fire-related threats. However, they perform different functions.
Full-Time Dedicated Industrial Firefighters
Typically, having full-time dedicated industrial firefighters is ideal for organizations with firefighters who have undergone a higher level of training for extreme hazards that require immediate action and special resources. Some chemical fires cannot be extinguished by water and may become more dangerous upon exposure.
An industrial fire department assigned to a chemical plant must have firefighters on hand who can identify the chemicals that cause certain types of fires, and they must know how to safely extinguish them. The identification requires extensive training on chemical compounds and reactions as well as equipment to properly handle them and mitigate their risks.
Depending on the organization they support, full-time dedicated industrial firefighters may require government security clearances to access specific sites. Regardless of the threat presented by a fire at such locations, local firefighters are likely to be restricted from entering the site to extinguish the flames and may require an escort when they’re on site. These limitations are unlikely scenarios, given that these types of organizations tend to list specific clearances and certifications as requirements of the job; however, they underscore why organizations really do need to form their own industrial fire departments and establish robust mutual-aid agreements with other local fire departments.
Full-time dedicated industrial fire departments are usually modeled after municipal fire departments in terms of organizational hierarchy. The shift schedule can last anywhere from 12 hours to one or two days. Some organizations will not allow firefighters to sleep while they’re on duty, so the 12-hour shift model defines the typical work schedule. The communication approach, however, usually mirrors that of a 911 dispatch center: automated alarms monitored around the clock by dedicated personnel. These full-time departments provide the following:
- Hazmat.
- Emergency medical response.
- Technical rescue.
- Confined space operations.
- Fire prevention.
- Training in addition to the typical services expected of a fire department.
Advantages of a Concentrated Mindset
The main advantage of this type of brigade is that its firefighters focus on a single job and are prepared to perform that job at a moment’s notice. Unlike municipal firefighters, they do not have an obligation to take responsibility for an operator’s job function or perform any duties outside of preventing and mitigating fires and related hazards. The concentrated mindset positions them to immediately respond to any potential threat without distraction. Extreme risks like chemical spills and fires cannot wait for mitigation. Organizations exposed to these risks are better positioned to mitigate an incident by having their own exclusive fire department rather than relying on a local one. Employing full-time dedicated industrial firefighters lightens the load on local fire departments. Organizations can rely on their own industrial fire department instead of encountering the consequences from splitting local firefighters’ focus between house fires or local businesses and industrial events. From a safety standpoint, having industrial firefighters offers a crucial advantage because it creates a significantly reduced response time in the event of a fire, chemical spill, rescue, or medical emergency. It also presents an insurance benefit, as many commercial insurance companies may offer reduced premiums for organizations that have their own full-time proprietary fire brigade. As full-time dedicated industrial firefighters do not have additional responsibilities outside of their roles within the organization, they have bandwidth to devote to the administrative side of firefighting, prevention, and networking with plant operators and contractors on critical activities.
Administrative tasks include training new hires on their organization’s safety culture, managing all regulatory requirements for their organization, and performing ongoing risk assessments against their organization’s existing emergency response plans. The hiring pools for most organizations with a full-time dedicated fire brigade primarily consist of certified municipal firefighters. As a result, the overall model for these types of brigades closely resembles a municipal fire department. To transition away from this similarity, these firefighters require additional training on unique site hazards, site operations, and corporate directives.
“Having a full-time dedicated industrial fire department provides our employees, contractors, and community a safer work environment,” said Paul Swetish, chief of Refinery Terminal Fire Company (RTFC). “Our fire department is an all-service fire response team and maintains a state of readiness 24/7. My place of work, RTFC, sees the fire department as a critical piece of operations, the community, and our customers. Making the choice to fund a full-time fire brigade is an easy choice. We can all say we have a safer work culture but the follow through is action. Our full-time dedicated fire brigade is just one way we take action.”
Emergency Response Teams
ERTs can perform either advanced exterior or interior structural firefighting based on the level of training for the chemical, petrochemical, nuclear, and manufacturing industries. ERT members primarily have two job functions: working in operations and responding to emergencies.
When an on-site incident occurs, ERT members leave the first function to perform at the second. This organizational setup does not typically follow the municipal model. Instead, it usually consists of a fire brigade leader or manager for the ERT, shift ERT leaders, and ERT members.
The basis of communication comes from the in-house dispatcher. This member of security manages the round-the-clock site alarms. The fire brigade manager handles ensuring that the brigade meets regulatory requirements and provides the ERT with the resources its members need.
Unlike the setup for full-time dedicated industrial firefighters, organizations establish ERTs solely by helping their prospective members achieve specific training goals. At its most basic, this training covers essential industrial firefighting skills and knowledge. But more training is needed for ERT members in leadership roles. Advanced off-site training is run by organizations that specialize in industrial firefighting education and live fire training such as the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) Emergency Services Training Institute.
Because of the increased level of training and response to hazardous situations, ERT members typically receive additional pay in the form of a stipend by virtue of belonging to an ERT. The stipend could be as much as 5% of the person’s annual salary, but it is not universal within the industry.
Advantages of Specialized Training
Implementing an ERT to an industry can help you save on operating costs. Like organizations with full-time dedicated industrial fire brigades, ERTs can experience lower insurance premiums than their peers. While ERTs are expensive to set up, especially because of the extensive training ERT members need, they require significantly less funding. Other advantages of ERTs include a solid working knowledge of on-site operations among all ERT members and excellent modeling of a proper safety culture within the organization. Charnticia Taylor, an operator and ERT member with Ascend Performance Materials in Pensacola, Florida, discusses her experience being part of an ERT. “Working for a company that provides me the opportunity and the funding to be an emergency response team member while also performing my job in operations is a bonus,” she said. “The fire training and fire leadership training provide me with an extra skill set and an additional layer of confidence when I work in operations. When an alarm sounds anywhere on site, I’m responding with other ERT members from across the site, who have a strong working knowledge of plant operations. The process of combining the fire training and operations knowledge helps with sizing up a scene quickly so we can start mitigating the issues.”
The Difference Between Life and Death
Outside of the two primary types of industrial fire brigades, we have a third type that can help organizations meet their industrial fire response needs. Some organizations have combined forces to share the cost of keeping a full-time dedicated fire brigade, often seen at industrial parks with a centralized industrial fire department, or a company like RTFC, which provides industrial fire protection on a membership basis.
To identify the right type of industrial fire response, leadership must determine what will most effectively help both the company and its stakeholders. The International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) Industrial Fire & Safety Section is a great resource for any questions or support firefighters may need.3 Industrial incidents can be devastating to a company and community, and having an efficient emergency response plan in place can mean the difference between life and death.
ENDNOTES
1. “Fire Brigades.” Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 2008, bit.ly/3TqBREs.
2. Standard on Facility Fire Brigades. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 600, 2020, bit.ly/4gnXlLV.
3. “Industrial Fire & Safety.” International Association of Fire Chiefs, 2024, bit.ly/3XGOAVW.
REFERENCE
Federal Register, Office of the Federal Register, federalregister.gov.
DAN KING has served the fire and emergency services industry for 24 years. His experience includes municipal and industrial fire departments, federal emergency preparedness, and occupational health management. He is the fire chief at Ascend Performance Materials. He is also the chair of the IAFC Industrial Fire & Safety Section. King has expertise in leading, training, and mentoring top performers in the industry. He leverages this experience and expertise to develop in-depth training programs that positively affect safety metrics and protocols for industrial organizations. King’s education includes a master’s degree in executive leadership and a bachelor’s degree in fire administration. He has authored fire safety books for children, including What Kind of Firefighter Do You Want to Be? and The Strength Behind the Bravest Chaplains in the Fire Service. He is pursuing his Ph.D. in emergency management.
