ARLINGTON, VA. – Over the next few days, the future of fire service research will be hashed out and prioritized.
Personnel from around the country participating in the National Fire Service Research Agenda Symposium will not only be listening, but discussing topics and prioritizing them.
“I probably have the coolest job in the world,” Maggie Wilson told the group Tuesday morning explaining that she enjoys overseeing the AFG programs.
She mentioned that the success of the program can be traced back to the beginning.
“It was developed by the fire service for the fire service...and the priorities are set by firefighters.”
The crowd erupted into applause when she announced that over the past few years more than $100M in Fire Prevention/Safety grants have been awarded.
There was a decline in funding a few years ago, however it’s been steadily going back up because of the hard collaborative effort of firefighters and researchers, she noted.
Dr. Denise Smith, a research scientist at Illinois Fire Service Institute, lauded those involved in the studies for their patience. A study about heat stress has spread to other related issues.
She added that just as the military has a responsibility to its soldiers, it’s mission critical that the men and women in the fire service be given the data so they can do their jobs safely.
Likewise, Dr. Jeff Burgess said he’s impressed that firefighters really do enjoy what they do, which is said is rather unusual.
Burgess, a researcher from the University of Arizona, encouraged the audience to keep asking questions and reaching out. He added that college students are often looking for internships or conducting research.
Symposium participants were divided into seven groups to discuss community risk reduction, data management, emergency operations, health and wellness, occupational diseases of firefighting, tools and equipment and wildland firefighting.
Each panel – comprised of people who’ve demonstrated an interest in research -- will discuss the critical and emerging needs.
“They will tell us what possible research should be conducted in the next few years,” explained Dennis Compton, chairman of the National Fallen Firefighters’ board.
A jury of fire service officials and researchers will take the evidence presented and deliberate. They will render decisions by creating a roadmap of research.
Their ruling will be delivered in the near future.
“I think this is a great way to approach this,” Compton added.
