Jeffery L. King BSFS, MSESM, CTO, FSCEO District Chief – Fire Training Division Cy-Fair Volunteer Fire Department Senior Captain – Safety Office Houston Fire Department
TCFP – Incident Safety Officer
DoD – Health & Safety Officer – currently enrolled
In a 15-year period, the HFD suffered 15 LODDs secondary to traumatic injuries on the fireground in under 29,000 working fires. During this period, the national average was three LODDs in 100,000 working fires. Houston’s numbers, extrapolated out to 100,000 working fires, would equate to 51 LODDs. This was unacceptable and needed immediate attention.
I dedicated myself to improving the health, safety, and survivability of the members of our department. I used the platform of the Professional Development Office to address the issues through training and education. I worked with members from UL’s FSRI and NIST to develop training programs on Wind Driven Fires, Situational Awareness, and Modern Fire Dynamics to introduce the latest research on fire behavior and fire ground operations. I supplemented our internal training with external programs available through Blue Card, FSTAR, IAFC, ISFSI, and NYU-Poly’s ALIVE training program. In short, I used training and education to challenge the culture of our departments to improve the overall safety, health, and wellness of our members.
My zeal for sharing this information has lead me beyond the walls of HFD and CFVFD. With the help of organizations like Blue Card, HCFFA, IAFC, FSTAR, TAFE, and the SMARTER technical panel, I have been able to share my passion at the local, regional, state, and national level. I believe improving the safety, health, and survivability of firefighters is a calling. I am answering the call by applying for an At-Large Director position in the SHS Section.