Last-minute modifications that weren’t properly communicated contributed to the burns sustained by a firefighter during a training exercise last year, the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department says.
One team of firefighters was not equipped to properly handle two live fires during the Oct. 13, 2024, training at the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Academy, attributable to a lack of communication among training organizers, according to a department report released Friday (Oct. 24).
Though adjustments were made to the order of the operation on the morning of the training, no steps were taken to alter fuel loads or the equipment used — preventing participants from properly taking down the targeted fires.
“This allowed fuel loads built to be extinguished with a hoseline to remain in place while asking participants to search a well-involved basement … while only equipping them with a water can,” Battalion Chief Matthew Tamillow said.
According to the report, investigators found that the late modifications to the plan were implemented without adequate review, and that inconsistent practices were followed because no single authoritative policy was identified to lead the way.
A five-day recreation of the incident led by experts from the Fire Safety Research Institute identified 16 contributing factors in all. Investigators also highlighted how perspectives of trainings can result in complacency, which is detrimental.
“While live fire training is designed to simulate real-world conditions, the controlled nature of these scenarios can create a false sense of security,” the report reads. “This perception may lead participants to adopt practices and decision-making approaches that deviate from real-world operational protocols.”
More than a dozen recommendations in all were made by investigators, including a need to implement a formal process for proposing and approving training modifications and requirements that pre-drill briefings be conducted to ensure clarity of objectives.
Other recommendations of note include the need for standardized water can training, based on three incidents of misuse during the training session in question.
“This was a deeply important and humbling process,” Fairfax County Fire Chief John Butler said in a statement. “Our mission is to protect life and property, and that includes the lives of our own members.
“The lessons learned here are grounded in science, transparency, and accountability,” Butler added, “and will make live fire training safer not only in Fairfax County but across the fire service.”
