We Spend Thousands on Equipment, But What About Training?
Walk into just about any firehouse across the country and you’ll find thousands, if not millions, of dollars worth of equipment. Brand new apparatus, state-of-the-art tools, thermal imaging cameras, hydraulic rescue equipment, and the latest technology designed to make our jobs safer and more efficient. But here’s a question worth asking: Are we investing the same level of effort into the people expected to operate that equipment? First and foremost, I understand that money is tight, especially in rural and volunteer departments where budgets are stretched thin and every dollar needs to be justified. Sometimes departments are forced to choose between replacing aging equipment and providing additional training, and I completely understand that reality. However, there’s something fundamentally wrong with spending thousands of dollars on top-of-the-line equipment only to let it sit on an apparatus while the members responsible for using it receive little to no meaningful training. Equipment is only as effective as the firefighter operating it, and purchasing the best tools money can buy doesn’t automatically create a capable fire department. We cannot continue investing in equipment while overlooking the investment that matters most: our people.
One of the biggest misconceptions surrounding firefighter training is that quality training needs to come with an enormous price tag. Don’t get me wrong, there are some incredible training organizations and instructors out there offering outstanding programs that cost thousands of dollars. I’ve personally attended quite a few of these classes, and the knowledge, experience, and confidence I’ve walked away with made them worth every penny. If your department has the opportunity to attend these programs, I highly recommend taking advantage of them. But I also recognize that bringing in a nationally recognized instructor or training company simply isn’t financially realistic for every department. That doesn’t mean training needs to stop. If you can’t afford to bring an instructor to your firehouse, invest in sending a few officers or senior firefighters to outside training and have them bring that knowledge back to the membership. Encourage them to develop drills, share what they’ve learned, and become resources for the rest of the department. Reach out to neighboring departments and coordinate joint training opportunities. Splitting the cost of an outside instructor between three or four departments can make an otherwise unaffordable class completely realistic. Better yet, you’re now training alongside the same firefighters who may be responding to your next working fire. Training doesn’t always require a large budget, but it does require initiative, creativity, and a genuine willingness to improve.
Now comes the part that might upset a few people. There are departments out there that have the financial resources, facilities, and opportunities to provide quality training, yet they simply don’t. Why? Is it a lack of motivation from the membership? Is it officers who aren’t willing to put in the effort to organize meaningful drills? Or, and I sincerely hope this isn’t the case, is it because someone wearing a white helmet believes they already know everything their firefighters need to know? Being elected by your peers doesn’t automatically make you an expert in firefighting, leadership, or training. Being popular around the firehouse, sharing a few beers, and getting along with everyone might help you win an election, but none of those things guarantee you’ll make the right decisions when conditions deteriorate and firefighters are depending on your leadership. The same goes for leadership training. I’ve heard the argument that outside leadership courses aren’t necessary because nobody understands a department better than its own officers. That may be true when it comes to knowing your members and your organization’s culture, but understanding your department doesn’t mean you’ve mastered leadership. Hopefully, when the pressure is on, you’re just as talented at making difficult decisions, holding people accountable, and leading under stress as you are at being everyone’s friend. The moment we convince ourselves that we have nothing left to learn is the moment we begin doing a disservice to the people we’re supposed to lead. Good officers don’t need to have every answer. They need to recognize their weaknesses, seek out knowledge, and create an environment where learning is encouraged rather than viewed as a threat to their authority.
Another argument I hear far too often is, “We don’t need that type of training because we rarely get those calls.” I understand the thought process. Why spend money on elevator emergencies when your first-due district only has one or two elevators? Why train on technical rescue scenarios when your department rarely encounters them? Why invest in specialized training when your call volume doesn’t seem to justify it? Here’s my response: Just because an incident is uncommon doesn’t mean it can’t happen tomorrow. You might only have one elevator in your district, but hopefully, when that call comes in for someone trapped inside, your firefighters know exactly what they’re doing. And let’s hope it’s simply a stalled elevator and not an occupant experiencing a serious medical emergency while your crew struggles to figure out how to gain access. I’m not suggesting every department needs to become a specialized rescue team or spend money preparing for every imaginable scenario. Training priorities should absolutely reflect your community’s hazards, capabilities, and responsibilities. But there’s a difference between making an informed decision about training priorities and using low call volume as an excuse to avoid learning something new. Sometimes the value of a training program extends beyond the specific skill being taught. It builds confidence, strengthens teamwork, challenges firefighters to think outside their normal routines, and can provide a much-needed boost to departmental morale. Furthermore, training shouldn’t be something we do simply to satisfy annual requirements or check a box on a spreadsheet. It needs to be realistic, consistent, and evaluated. We should be identifying weaknesses during drills, correcting them, and revisiting those skills until members demonstrate proficiency. If the first time your firefighters are figuring out how to use a piece of equipment or perform an unfamiliar operation is during an actual emergency, we’ve already failed them. And perhaps most importantly, our training needs to reflect the reality that we don’t operate alone. Building relationships and practicing with mutual aid departments before an emergency can make an enormous difference when those same companies arrive on your fireground.
I want to make something clear before wrapping this up. This article isn’t intended to bash any particular department, officer, or firefighter. There are countless departments doing incredible things with extremely limited resources, and some of the most dedicated firefighters I’ve encountered come from organizations that don’t have much money to spend. I have tremendous respect for those departments and the individuals who continually find ways to improve despite the challenges they face. However, the mentality I’ve discussed throughout this article absolutely exists in our profession, whether we want to acknowledge it or not. If you’ve never experienced it, consider yourself fortunate. But if something you’ve read has offended you or made you uncomfortable, perhaps it’s worth taking a moment to examine why. We should never be afraid to question how we operate, where we spend our money, or whether we’re doing enough to prepare our people. If your department genuinely wants to improve its training but finances are standing in the way, reach out to training organizations, neighboring departments, county training officials, or instructors in your area. Explain your situation, explore your options, and see what’s possible. You might be surprised by how many people are willing to work with you. At the end of the day, nobody is expecting every fire department to have unlimited resources, the newest apparatus, or the most advanced training facility. But our communities have every right to expect that when they call 911, the firefighters arriving at their door have made a genuine effort to prepare for whatever they’re about to face. We owe that to the people we protect, the firefighters riding beside us, and the families expecting us to come home. Buy the equipment, absolutely. But never forget to invest in the people who are expected to use it.
