Chapter 1 Glossary - The Orientation And History Of The Fire Service

Front 1

911 dispatcher/telecommunicator

Back 1

From the communications center, the dispatcher takes the calls from the public, sends appropriate units to the scene, assists callers with treatment instructions until the EMS unit arrives, and assists the incident commander with needed resources.

Front 2

Advanced Emergency Medical Technician (AEMT)

Back 2

A member of EMS who can perform limited procedures that usually fall between those provided by an EMT- Basic and those provided by an EMT-Paramedic, including IV therapy, interpretation of cardiac rhythms, defibrillation, and airway intubation.

Front 3

Aircraft/crash rescue fire fighter (ARFF)

Back 3

An individual with specialized training in aircraft fires, extrication of victims from aircraft, and extinguishing agents. These fire fighters wear special types of turnout gear and respond in fire apparatus that protect them from high temperature fires.

Front 4

Assistant or division chief

Back 4

A midlevel chief who often has a functional area of responsibility, such as training, and who answers directly to the fire chief.

Front 5

Banked

Back 5

Covering a fire to ensure low burning.

Front 6

Battalion chief

Back 6

Usually the first level of fire chief; also called a district chief. These chiefs are often in charge of running calls and supervising multiple stations or districts within a city. A battalion chief is usually the officer in charge of a single-alarm working fire.

Front 7

Captain

Back 7

The second rank of promotion in the fire service, between the lieutenant and the battalion chief. Captains are responsible for managing a fire company and for coordinating the activities of that company among the other shifts.

Front 8

Chain of command

Back 8

A rank structure, spanning the fire fighter through the fire chief, for managing a fire department and fire-ground operations.

Front 9

Chief of the department

Back 9

The top position in the fire department. The fire chief has ultimate responsibility for the fire department and usually answers directly to the mayor or other designated public official.

Front 10

Chief’s trumpet

Back 10

An obsolete amplification device that enabled a chief officer to give orders to fire fighters during an emergency. It was a precursor to a bullhorn and portable radios.

Front 11

Company officer

Back 11

The officer, or any other position of comparable responsibility in the department, in charge of a fire department company or station. (NFPA 1143)

Front 12

Consensus document

Back 12

A code document developed through agreement between people representing different organizations and interests. NFPA codes and standards are consensus documents.

Front 13

Discipline

Back 13

The guidelines that a department sets for fire fighters to work within.

Front 14

Division of labor

Back 14

Breaking down an incident or task into a series of smaller, more manageable tasks and assigning personnel to complete those tasks.

Front 15

Doff

Back 15

To take off an item of clothing or equipment.

Front 16

Don

Back 16

To put on an item of clothing or equipment.

Front 17

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) company

Back 17

A company that may be made up of medical units and first response vehicles. Members of this company respond to and assist in the transport of medical and trauma victims to medical facilities. They often have medications, defibrillators, and paramedics who can stabilize a critical patient.

Front 18

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel

Back 18

Personnel who are responsible for administering prehospital care to people who are sick and injured. Prehospital calls make up the majority of responses in most fire departments, and EMS personnel are cross-trained as fire fighters.

Front 19

Emergency Medical Technician–Basic (EMT-Basic)

Back 19

EMS personnel who account for most of the EMS providers in the United States. EMT-Basics have training in basic emergency care skills, including oxygen therapy, bleeding control, CPR, automated external defibrillation, use of basic airway devices, and assisting patients with certain medications.

Front 20

Emergency Medical Technician–Paramedic (EMTParamedic)

Back 20

EMS personnel with the highest level of training in EMS, including cardiac monitoring, administering drugs, inserting advanced airways, manual defibrillation, and other advanced assessment and treatment skills.

Front 21

Engine company

Back 21

A group of fire fighters who work as a unit and are equipped with one or more pumping engines that have rated capacities of 2840 L/min (750 gpm) or more. (NFPA 1410)

Front 22

Fire and life safety education specialist

Back 22

A member of the fire department who deals with the public on education, fire safety, and juvenile fire safety programs.

Front 23

Fire apparatus driver/operator

Back 23

A fire department member who is authorized by the authority having jurisdiction to drive, operate, or both drive and operate fire department vehicles. (NFPA 1451)

Front 24

Fire apparatus maintenance personnel

Back 24

The people who repair and service the fire and EMS vehicles, ensuring that they are always ready to respond to emergencies.

Front 25

Fire Fighter I

Back 25

A person, at the first level of progression as defined in Chapter 5 , who has demonstrated the knowledge and skills to function as an integral member of a firefighting team under direct supervision in hazardous conditions. (NFPA 1001)

Front 26

Fire Fighter II

Back 26

A person, at the second level of progression as defined in Chapter 6 , who has demonstrated the skills and depth of knowledge to function under general supervision. (NFPA 1001)

Front 27

Fire hook

Back 27

A tool used to pull down burning structures.

Front 28

Fire mark

Back 28

Historically, an identifying symbol on a building informing fire fighters that the building was insured by a company that would pay them for extinguishing the fire.

Front 29

Fire marshal/fire inspector/fire investigator

Back 29

A member of the fire department who inspects businesses and enforces laws that deal with public safety and fire codes. A fire investigator may also respond to fire scenes to help incident commanders investigate the cause of a fire. Investigators may have full police powers of arrest and deal directly with investigations and arrests.

Front 30

Fire police

Back 30

Members of the fire department who protect fire fighters by controlling traffic and securing the scene from public access. Many fire police are sworn peace officers as well as fire fighters.

Front 31

Fire protection engineer

Back 31

A member of the fire department who is responsible for reviewing plans and working with building owners to ensure that the design of and systems for fire detection and suppression will meet applicable codes and function as needed.

Front 32

Fire wardens

Back 32

Individuals who were charged with enforcing fire regulations in colonial America.

Front 33

Fireplug

Back 33

A valve installed to control water accessed from wooden pipes.

Front 34

Governance

Back 34

The process by which an organization exercises authority and performs the functions assigned to it.

Front 35

Hazardous materials company

Back 35

A fire company that responds to and controls scenes where hazardous materials have spilled or leaked. Responders wear special suits and are trained to deal with most chemicals.

Front 36

Hazardous materials technician

Back 36

A person who responds to hazardous materials/weapons of mass destruction (WMD) incidents using a risk-based response process by which they analyze the problem at hand, select applicable decontamination procedures, and control a release while using specialized protective clothing and control equipment. (NFPA 472)

Front 37

Incident command system (ICS)

Back 37

The combination of facilities, equipment, personnel, procedures, and communications operating within a common organizational structure that has responsibility for the management of assigned resources to effectively accomplish stated objectives pertaining to an incident or training exercise. (NFPA 1670)

Front 38

Incident commander (IC)

Back 38

The person who is responsible for all decisions relating to the management of the incident and is in charge of the incident site. (NFPA 1500)

Front 39

Information management

Back 39

Fire fighters or civilians who take care of the computer and networking systems that a fire department needs to operate.

Front 40

Lieutenant

Back 40

A company officer who is usually responsible for a single fire company on a single shift; the first in line among company officers.

Front 41

Policies

Back 41

Formal statements that provide guidelines for present and future actions. Policies often require personnel to make judgments.

Front 42

Public information officer

Back 42

An individual who has demonstrated the ability to conduct media interviews and prepare news releases and media advisories. (NFPA 1035)

Front 43

Regulations

Back 43

Rules, usually issued by a government or other legally authorized agency, that dictate how something must be done. Regulations are often developed to implement a law.

Front 44

Rescue company

Back 44

A group of fire fighters who work as a unit and are equipped with one or more rescue vehicles. (NFPA 1410)

Front 45

Safety officer

Back 45

An individual appointed by the authority having jurisdiction as qualified to maintain a safe working environment at all live fire training evolutions. (NFPA 1403)

Front 46

SCUBA dive rescue technician

Back 46

A responder who is trained to handle water rescues and emergencies, including recovery and search procedures, in both water and under-ice situations. (SCUBA stands for “self-contained underwater breathing apparatus.”)

Front 47

Self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA)

Back 47

An atmosphere- supplying respirator that supplies a respirable air atmosphere to the user from a breathing air source that is independent of the ambient environment and designed to be carried by the user. (NFPA 1981)

Front 48

Span of control

Back 48

The maximum number of personnel or activities that can be effectively controlled by one individual (usually three to seven). (NFPA 1006)

Front 49

Standard operating procedure (SOP)

Back 49

A written organizational directive that establishes or prescribes specific operational or administrative methods to be followed routinely for the performance of designated operations or actions. (NFPA 1521)

Front 50

Suggested operating guideline (SOG)

Back 50

Another term for standard operating procedure.

Front 51

Technical rescue technician

Back 51

A fire fighter who is trained in special rescue techniques for incidents involving structural collapse, trench rescue, swiftwater rescue, confined-space rescue, and other unusual rescue situations.

Front 52

Thermal imaging device

Back 52

Electronic devices that detect differences in temperature based on infrared energy and then generate images based on those data. These devices are commonly used in obscured environments to locate victims.

Front 53

Training officer

Back 53

The person designated by the fire chief as having authority for overall management and control of the organization’s training program. (NFPA 1401)

Front 54

Truck company

Back 54

A group of fire fighters who work as a unit and are equipped with one or more pieces of aerial fire apparatus. (NFPA 1410)

Front 55

Unity of command

Back 55

The concept according to which each person within an organization reports to one, and only one, designated person. (NFPA 1026)

Front 56

Wildland/brush company

Back 56

A fire company that is dispatched to woods and brush fires where larger engines cannot gain access. Wildland/brush companies have fourwheel drive vehicles and special firefighting equipment.