News

  It’s well established that there’s a nationwide shortage of both professional and volunteer firefighters. As one Connecticut fire chief recently noted, “age is also a concern. [Our] average volunteer now is about 50 years old.” Communities across the country need to increase the size of their firefighting forces, decrease the age, and train everyone … Continued

  Simulator technology has proven to be a game-changer in training transit vehicle operators. Although we’ve seen these benefits throughout the transit sector, rail transit operators may reap some of the greatest rewards. Nigel Lindsey-King is a transit training professional and former Superintended of Surface Transportation Training for the Toronto Transit Commission. He has decades … Continued

HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah — Earlier this year, Fire and Emergency Services at Hill Air Force Base received three new fire trucks to enhance the department’s ability to respond to fires and other emergencies. Now, the addition of a new, high-tech pump operations simulator will serve to improve the training base firefighters receive by honing … Continued

According to data from the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), roughly 12,000 people were killed in police chases between 1979 and 2013.  That’s roughly one death per day and is almost certainly an undercount (according to a 2015 investigative report, NHTSA’s figures for many specific states—including Kansas, Michigan, and Minnesota–showed fewer … Continued

  We already know that police pursuits are extremely dangerous to both bystanders and officers, but they’re also extremely expensive. In Canton v. Harris (1989) the Supreme Court found that, under certain circumstances, inadequate training resulting in injury or death can be the basis for liability under U.S.C. Title 42, S. 1983.  Although that particular … Continued

  Officers are expected to be on-the-spot social workers. That demands monumental presence of mind—which is completely at odds with the realities of the street, where a million things are happening at once. Chuck Deakins—FAAC Training Group lead subject matter specialist (SMS)—points out, “When I go into a physical training or martial arts environment, what’s … Continued

  On the afternoon of August 14, Philadelphia police came to the Nicetown neighborhood to serve a narcotics warrant. This relatively routine task “went awry almost immediately,” according to Police Commissioner Richard Ross. The suspect opened fire. Two officers were trapped inside, along with three civilians—and would remain trapped indoors for five hours, as the … Continued