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NFPA announces new resource for fire service officers 
Teams with Fire Department Safety Officers Association to deliver training

April 25, 2013 – The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) announced the new Company Officers Responsibility for Incident Safety (CORFIS) program. The program was developed to serve as a resource for fire officers and others whom are responsible for supervising firefighters during firefighting operations. NFPA teamed up with Fire Department Safety Officers Association (FDSOA) of Ashland, Massachusetts which will add this program to their existing library of training programs and deliver it to the U.S. fire service.

NFPA’s Ken Willette and Steven Sawyer presented the new Company Officers Responsibility for Incident Safety (CORFIS) program to Fire Department Safety Officers Association (FDSOA) at FDIC. (L-R) Bob Colameta of Max Media, program consultant, Steven Sawyer, NFPA, Ken Willette, NFPA, Michael Petroff, Chairman of Board of Directors of Fire Department Safety Officers Association and Scott Freitag, Western Director, FDSOA.

The training, which lasts two and a half hours, will develop a better understanding of NFPA 1561, Standard for Emergency Services Incident Management, and NFPA 1521, Standard for Fire Department Safety Officer. The program identifies several other NFPA standards and uses cases studies from recent line-of-duty death reports published by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to illustrate how fire ground conditions can rapidly deteriorate. It offers guidance to a company officer in the initial stages of an incident including the necessity of maintaining constant situational awareness and conducting operations in accordance with established Standard Operating Guidelines.

“Understanding and applying these codes could significantly reduce firefighter death and injury,” said Ken Willette, NFPA’s division manager of Public Fire Protection and a former fire chief. “Firefighters and fire officers who oversee others will benefit from utilizing a risk management approach to tactical firefighting decisions and fostering an atmosphere within their companies that promotes safety."

Attendees of the Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) taking place in Indianapolis, Indiana this week are invited to stop by NFPA’s booth to view the materials. The conference attracts thousands of firefighters from across the globe that attend to participate in training, networking and learning opportunities. 

For more information about the Company Officer Responsibility For Incident Safety program, contact Ken Willette of the NFPA at 617-984-7299 or kwillette@nfpa.org. For more information about the Fire Department Safety Officers Association, contact fdsoa@fdsoa.org.

About the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
NFPA is a worldwide leader in fire, electrical, building, and life safety. The mission of the international nonprofit organization founded in 1896 is to reduce the worldwide burden of fire and other hazards on the quality of life by providing and advocating consensus codes and standards, research, training, and education. NFPA develops more than 300 codes and standards to minimize the possibility and effects of fire and other hazards. All NFPA codes and standards can be viewed at no cost at www.nfpa.org/freeaccess.

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Contact: Lorraine Carli, Public Affairs Office: +1 617 984-7275