GENERAL ATTENDEE REGISTRATION
NMFCA Summer Symposium
July 28 - 29, 2022
$175 - Per Person
Breakfast and Lunch Provided
View Our Agenda Here!
Great Wolf Lodge
3575 N. US Highway 31
Traverse City, MI 49686
(231) 941-3700
There are no longer reduced rate rooms available!
Book Your Room Here!
KEYNOTE PRESENTATIONS
Standard Operating Procedures in the Fire Service
by Curt Varone
Policies and procedures have become increasingly important to fire departments in our complex, litigious society. Beyond helping to reduce liability, effective policies improve operations and enhance the safety and health of firefighters. They are the cornerstone of organizational learning, and have proven to be the best method for incorporating lessons learned into a fire department’s daily operations.
Yet the lack of policies is repeatedly cited in NIOSH firefighter fatality reports as a contributing factor in firefighter fatalities. In addition the lack of policies figures prominently in many lawsuits holding fire department liable. This program addresses the role that policies and procedures play in the modern fire service, and the challenges fire departments face in developing and implementing them.
Curt Varone has over 40 years of experience in the fire service, retiring in 2008 as a Deputy Assistant Chief with the Providence, RI, Fire Department. He is a practicing attorney licensed in both Rhode Island and Maine, and served as the Director of the Public Fire Protection Division at the NFPA. Curt has written two books, Legal Considerations for Fire and Emergency Services, and Fire Officer's Legal Handbook. He is a Contributing Editor for Firehouse Magazine and writes the Fire Law column. He remains active as a deputy chief with the Exeter (RI) Fire Department.
“The Decision-Making Trifecta for Building Fires”
by Dave Dodson
This course provides focus for any fire officer that is tasked with rapid assessment as a first-arriving decision-maker at incidents. It has been said: “So goes first-due, so goes the incident.” Our incidents are changing in scope, impact, and complexity – and so must our ability to rapidly survey and decide the right course of action when first arriving.
Originally developed in 2010, the course has been updated several times and has been presented to over 1500 fire officers in 23 states. The course has been officially approved for continuing education credits in the states of Oregon (DPSST), California, and Illinois (IFSI). CEU credits can be awarded for topics such as risk management, building construction, fire behavior, and/or incident management.
Dave Dodson is a 40-year fire service veteran – starting his Fire Service Career with the U.S. Air Force. After the USAF, Dave spent almost seven years as a Fire Officer and Training/Safety Officer for the Parker Fire District in Parker, Colorado. He became the first Career Training Officer for Loveland Fire & Rescue (CO) and rose through the ranks including time as a HazMat Technician, Duty Safety Officer, and Emergency Manager for the City. He accepted a Shift Battalion Chief position for the Eagle River Fire District in Colorado before starting his current company, Response Solutions, which is dedicated to teaching firefighter safety and practical incident handling.
Dave is the author of Fire Department Incident Safety Officer, 3rd Edition (Jones & Bartlett Learning) and co-author of The Art of Reading Buildings (Fire Engineering Books and Video). He has also authored many published items on Firefighter Safety & Survival and First-Due Officer procedures.
Chief Dodson has served as the Chairman of the NFPA 1521 Task Group (Fire Department Safety Officer) and serves on the Fire Service Occupational Safety and Health Technical Committee for NFPA. In 1997, Dave was chosen as the ISFSI “George D. Post Fire Instructor of the Year.” Dave is also a Past-President of the Fire Department Safety Officer’s Association and in 2017 was awarded their first-ever “FDSOA Lifetime Achievement Award.”
