This book was initially written with the express purpose of making fire dynamics science accessible to Firefighters and practitioners at all levels. Although fire dynamics is a scientific discipline, we have kept jargon and mathematics to a minimum wherever possible, with the express intention of this being a very basic introduction to fire dynamics.
The success of the book pleasantly surprised, and has been cited in academic papers, used as mandatory reading by the Institution of Fire Engineers’ and used by many fire departments, training providers and organisations throughout the world.
As we approached the five year anniversary, having delivered training and assistance to Firefighters all over the world, with the assistance of our friends at IFRA and other charitable organisations, alongside our day jobs as professional Firefighting Instructors, we reflected and bought the books forward to become even more helpful.
Shan developed the IFE’s International Tactical Firefighting (Compartment Behaviour Instructors’ Programme), of which some of this book addresses parts of the learning outcomes required for successful completion- so we have listed them at the end of each chapter. More are linked in the sequels to this book and of course during the course.
We also realized that during our travels, some Firefighters only have access to a cell phone as a source of information, the developing world often can’t afford books- so this edition will also have an "e-copy" or "kindle"- within this we’ve also added hyper-links to public domain videos, kindly provided often by our friends, which are available on our YouTube channel which is all free. A big thank you to our friends globally for their support with that and we feel it helps to embed the simple learning in this edition.
Hopefully those introduced will want to learn more and progress onto the more technical and detailed publications on this subject. Think of this book as the first ’stepping stone’ onto more detailed and academic publications on this subject.
A sound understanding of the fundamentals of fire development forms the essential foundation of safe and efficient fire and rescue operations. This empowers us to protect our colleagues and the communities we serve.
This book would not have been possible without the innovators in this field who have successfully linked theoretical fire dynamics with the practice of successful and professional firefighting in the field and giving us their time and indulgence with this project. Thank you especially to Bill Gough, Martin Arrowsmith, "The Exbendables", Andrew Starnes, Bobby Halton, David Kay, Matthew Swan, David Payton, Nick Lacey, Sean McKee, Chris Gannon, Steven Burns and anyone else I’ve overlooked and apologise for. I will make special mention to those former, and serving Officers in the UK that supported me when it was politically easier to take other options.
Benjamin Walker is a globally acclaimed presenter and international compartment firefighting instructor. He started his career in the Metropolitan Tyne & Wear Fire Brigade, working and commanding some of Europe's busiest fire stations. Following a spell at a small rural fire department, he took a study sabbatical in the United States, obtaining several fire service certifications and studying FEMA's Emergency Management qualifications. Returning to the UK to train the London Fire Brigade in compartment firefighting, he was recognised by the Institution of Fire Engineers, winning the Godiva Award and subsequent works and contributions led to award of the Fellowship of the Institution aged 40. He has had operational spells at Fire EMS departments in the USA including riding out with Chicago Fire Department, Newport FD and studying Emergency Medicine at Roger Williams University, Providence, Rhode Island. In demand as a presenter and instructor, he has taught on multiple occasions at the world's largest conference, FDIC in Indianapolis, and remains determined in his pursuit of reducing firefighter line of duty deaths worldwide. He appears as a firefighting subject expert for Sky News, BBC, Russia Today and many other media outlets, writing for The Guardian, FIRE, Fire Risk Management, Fire Engineering and more.
Shan Raffel has served as a career firefighter in Brisbane Australia since 1983. His career took a serious change in 1994 after two of his colleagues were killed in the line of duty while conducting fighting operations in a relatively routine fire in a small motorcycle dealership. The Coroner's report was unable to identify the cause of two extreme fire events that cause severe burns, dislocating them from the hose line and rendering them unconscious. In 1996, two other colleagues were seriously injured after being caught in an extreme fire event while conducting search and rescue operations in a smoke-laden section of a Backpackers Hostel in Rockhampton. These events motivated him to develop an extensive report that led to an international study of compartment fire behaviour training (CFBT) in 1997. He studied at the leading training institutions in Sweden and the UK. Over the next three years, he developed the first nationally recognized CFBT program in Australia. Subsequently, he has assisted numerous fire services around the world in the development of their training facilities, instructors, and teaching materials. In 2009 he was awarded a "Churchill Fellowship" to research "Planning Preparation and Response to Emergencies in Tunnels". This resulted in an intensive ten-week international research tour. This included leading fire services, training centres and tunnel operators in the USA (FDNY), Canada, Germany, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Switzerland. This knowledge was critical in the development of emergency response plans for the 3 largest road tunnels in Australia. His international training experience spans 26 countries, and his International Compartment Fire Behaviour Instructors program gained international credentialing through the Institution of Fire Engineers recognition process in 2018. www.linkedin.com/in/shanraffel
대한민국에 실화재훈련 기법이 소개된 지 어느덧 7년의 세월이 흘렀습니다. 실화재훈련은 2016년 6월 경기소방학교에서 2주간 이 책의 저자인 션 라펠(Shan Raffel) 국제 강사님이 운영하신 전국 화재진압교관 대상 실화재교육(Compartment Fire Behavior Training)에서 처음 접했습니다. 그때까지만 해도 그저 화재를 잠시나마 체험하고 경험할 수 있는 화재 현장을 대체하는 수단 정도에 불과했습니다. 수년이 지난 지금은 대한민국 소방에서, 특히 화재 진압분야에서 가장 각광받고 주목받는 훈련기법이 됐으니 참으로 격세지감(隔世之感)이 아닐 수 없습니다. 당시엔 화재관련 자격취득 자체도, 굳이 자비를 들여 개인휴가를 사용하고 개인보호장비까지 다 짊어지고 화재훈련을 하러 국외로 간다는 것도 이해가 안 되던 시기였습니다. 지금은 그 어느 때보다 관심과 응원을 받는 분위기로 변모해 마치 본인은 그 자리에 서 있으나 세상이 빨리 변해가는 것 같은 착각이 들 때도 있습니다. 2019년 이후 중앙소방학교에서 대한민국 두 번째로 실화재훈련장이 건립됐습니다. 경북과 각 시도에서도 기본형태 뿐만 아니라 다양한 유형의 실화재훈련장이 건 립되고 있습니다. 이에 션 라펠과 벤 워커의 실화재 진압 시리즈 첫 번째 책을 우리 나라 소방에 관심 있는 누구든 이해하기 쉽도록 한글로 편집과 번역하는 작업을 진 행하게 됐습니다.우리에게는 유구한 '불잡이'의 자랑스러운 역사가 있습니다. 실화재(CFBT)의 개념 에는 분명히 우리 불잡이 선배님들의 숨결이, 그리고 현장활동들이 아직 숨 쉬고 있 습니다. 다만 그 시대에 우리는 그 이론을 정립하지 못했을 뿐. 이제는 우리 후대가 그 작업을 진행할 때라고 생각합니다. 바로 미래 소방대원들을 위하여. 그리고 대한 민국 화재진압분야 전문성 확보와 기술발전, 그리고 화재읽기 보편화를 통한 대원 현장안전을 위하여!여러분의 많은 관심과 도움을 바랍니다.이형은 드림소방관을 위한 화재대응공학. 두번째 에디션
