Editor-in-Chief Peter Matthews talks with Firehouse authors and speakers and members of the fire service about firefighter training and tactics, leadership, trends and traditions.
The Human Performance Side of Fire Officer Development – J.P. Moore
Peter Matthews talked with J.P. Moore, deputy director of the Illinois Fire Service Institute (IFSI), about their leadership development programs that place an emphasis on human performance for leaders during fireground operations and in-station situations.
Moore details some of IFSI’s programs that look at train future and current leaders on dealing with incident command, personnel management and conflict resolution and how physical health is part of successful outcomes. IFSI connects students to telemetry that measures their vital signs other body systems data to help each one understand when their stress levels rise and offers techniques to help them keep calm.
Incident command is a lot more that understanding fire behavior and personnel tracking, Moore says, adding that mental and human performance play key roles and are rarely taught to students. Moore explains how constant stress on officers can overwhelm them and what techniques they can use to limit exertion on the brain and body.
Related links:
Illinois Fire Service Institute
J.P. Moore’s Firehouse.com contributor page
28 Sept 2026
The Latest on FSRI’s Electric Vehicle Fire Research – Adam Barowy
For the last few years, electric vehicle (EV) fires have made national news headlines because of the unique and unknown challenges they present to firefighters, leading UL Research Institute’s Fire Safety Research Institute (FSRI) to launch a research effort to understand the mitigation and safety concerns.
Adam Barowy, a principal research engineer with FSRI, details the three-year effort to document EV fires and help fire departments develop operating guidelines as well as raise awareness to firefighter health and safety concerns. He explains the steps that FSRI took to conduct test burns, what stakeholders were involved and the processes in which they conducted test burns.
Barowy and Peter Matthews discuss the tactics needed, along with research findings on EV fire blankets, plus concerns for life safety when vehicles are burning inside occupied structures. The two discuss the impacts of the smoke on firefighter health and what impacts the smoke has on PPE.
While completing the report, FSRI developed an EV Fire Tactical Decision Aid that provides responding firefighters with a look at tactics and guides decisions during EV fire emergencies.
Related links:
Researchers Release Evidence-Based EV Battery Fire Response Considerations
New FSRI Study Details What Firefighters Need to Know About EV Fires
Electric Vehicle Fire Tactical Decision Aid
Adam Barowy’s Firehouse.com contributor page
21 Sept 2026
Beyond the Bugles: Little Fire Department, Big Leadership Mindset
Chief Jacob Johnson interviews Chief David Jones (ret.) of the Addison, TX, Fire Department. In this week's episode of Beyond the Bugles, they discuss all things leadership involving leadership within a small department that hosts big events, the finite techniques it takes to be a successful fire chief and strategies on collaborating with other fire departments.
Who has been a guest on Firehouse
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Michael Dozier
Ariel Jackson
Michael Glore
John J Lewis Jr
Robert Moran
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
520,082
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.0 / 5
9 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 58 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
50
Social presence
0
YouTube
86
Engagement
77
Contact Firehouse
Guest appearances
Books guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
