United States Fire Administration Releases Report Developed by IFSTA
Tuesday, June 5, 2018
STILLWATER, Okla. – The United States Fire Administration (USFA), an agency within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, has announced the release of the updated edition of their Safety and Health Considerations for the Design of Fire and Emergency Medical Services Stations. The report was produced under a cooperative research agreement with the International Fire Service Training Association (IFSTA), headquartered at Fire Protection Publications (FPP) at Oklahoma State University.
“The IFSTA/FPP have a longstanding relationship for performing cooperative research agreements with the UFSA on a variety of fire service operational and safety issues,” said Mike Wieder, associate director of FPP and executive director IFSTA. “These projects provide a number of benefits to all of the involved parties. The USFA makes the information directly available to the fire service community. The fire service can use the information in these reports to improve the efficiency and safety of their operations.”
Fire and EMS stations have the potential to contain a variety of hazards to the responders who work and live in them. Career firefighters spend as much as one-third of their lives in these facilities. Exposure to hazardous exhaust fumes from vehicles parked in the stations are one of the primary concerns. Others include the presence of personal protective equipment (PPE) that has been contaminated by smoke, hazardous chemicals and compounds, and biohazards posing a risk to the occupants, as well as trip and fall hazards. The Safety and Health Considerations for the Design of Fire and Emergency Medical Services Stations report provides information on mitigating the various hazards that fire and emergency stations may present. It includes the use of systems to vent apparatus exhaust fumes to the exterior and proper facilities for cleaning and storing PPE, as well many other station safety solutions. This information can be retrofitted into existing facilities or part of the design for new facilities that are being constructed.
IFSTA/FPP have been providing the fire service with valid, professional training materials for 85 years. The strength of their process and staff are recognized by other agencies and organizations in the field.
“In this case, the USFA, who provides training and leadership to the fire service at the federal level, recognized that IFSTA/FPP had the best experience, resources, and staff to tackle this import topic,” said Wieder. “This is just another example of how IFSTA/FPP, CEAT, and OSU are the recognized leader in providing training resources to the fire service of North America and beyond.”
RELEASE CONTACT: Kylie Fanning | CEAT Marketing | 405-744-2745 | kyliecf@okstate.edu
Oklahoma State University is a modern land-grant university that prepares students for success. OSU has more than 35,000 students across its five-campus system and more than 24,000 on its combined Stillwater and Tulsa campuses, with students from all 50 states and around 120 nations. Established in 1890, Oklahoma State has graduated more than 240,000 students who have been serving the state of Oklahoma, the nation and the world.
##