Firefighter safety training, as well as other types of fire-related training, should be held on a regular basis to help firefighters maintain and improve their knowledge, skills, and strategies. Training also provides an opportunity to review best practices, departmental regulations, and introduce new information to the team.
While on-site tactical training is certainly an important component of a well-rounded training regimen, these types of trainings tend to be costly, time-consuming, and impractical to achieve on a frequent basis. OSCR360 is a multi-use tool allowing the unique opportunity for limitless in-house training for fire departments.
Regular trainings without leaving your Fire Department.
The training opportunities with OSCR360 are as endless as the imagination. The OSCR360 System can help fire agencies train, and re-train for:
Firefighter Safety
Explore how to size up an emergency scene from a safety perspective and review strategies to effectively control and extinguish fires, while keeping individual safety top-of-mind. Using the OSCR360 Software, virtually walk-through a past fire scene and note building exits and other points of interest.
Investigation Training
Examine the details of past fire investigations to learn what to look for and train future fire investigators. View the OSCR360 images for proof of incendiarism and to connect the evidence. See the scene through the original investigator’s eyes to determine details regarding proof of opportunity and motive. See the digging process that investigators completed to uncover evidence and where that evidence was pulled from the scene.
Fire Behavior/Fire Science
Virtually walk through a former fire scene to observe the point of origin and burn patterns. See how your fire scene may have been affected by exposure to various materials and environmental conditions.
Ventilation Strategies
Show firefighters where, how, and when to ventilate a structure, and also discuss why ventilation is important for improving visibility, air quality, and decreasing extreme temperatures to prevent flashover.
Search and Rescue
Look at various environments from a search and rescue perspective, discussing appropriate techniques that would work best in each setting. Train your team, at your fire department, on various search and rescue scenarios.
Emergency Response/Active Threat Training
Determine public buildings within your area/jurisdiction where a potential problem could occur. These places may house dangerous chemicals, could be school buildings, or may be in low-lying areas that could flood or face environmental challenges. Train on the layout of these facilities, evacuation strategies, and make threat assessments – anywhere and anytime.
Training for Fire Departments: High-Risk Scenarios
Within any given municipality, there are always certain environments that require more attention and pre-planning than others. Factories and manufacturing plants, for instance, may pose a future HazMat emergency risk. Population dense environments, such as schools, hospitals, high-rises and office parks require additional attention due to the sheer volume of people who would be impacted in the event of an emergency.
In each unique environment, fire departments can use OSCR360 to pre-plan before an incident occurs by capturing each space with OSCR. Then, within the OSCR360 software, they can use Points of Interest (POIs) to draw attention to key details, such as the precise locations of explosive or hazardous materials, emergency exits, stairwells, and elevators.
While it may not be feasible to bring every firefighter through every high-risk environment in person, OSCR360 enables every firefighter the opportunity to familiarize themselves with these locations and corresponding emergency preparedness plans, virtually.
Post-incident review.
The time following an emergency call is often when teams will reflect on what went well and what could have been approached differently. With OSCR360, departments can document any scene in 360-degrees and virtually go back to access the scene, in the future.
OSCR360 images provide more perspective and environmental context than traditional photographs. Fire scene photos often look very similar because everything is burnt and blackened. A 360-degree photograph not only removes the aspect of trying to piece individual photos together to build a scene, but also offers a significantly faster process. Within the OSCR360 software, the scene flows together, so viewers can grasp a clear understanding of what they are looking at.
Whether reviewing a fire scene, car crash, water rescue, or other type of emergency scene, command staff can use OSCR360 as a visual timeline. This allows them to discuss each stage of the department’s response, pointing out exactly where and how firefighters responded appropriately, as well as where and how firefighters could tweak their approach at a future scene.
One NYS Fire Chief was reviewing OSCR360 images following a fire, when he noticed that one of the fire fighters from his department was not wearing a helmet within the structure. The Chief used this as a training opportunity to remind his fire fighters of the proper safety gear that must always be worn inside of structures.
Assessing unsafe structures and environments.
OSCR360 fully captures the details of any environment, without putting your manpower in harm’s way.
- When the second story is unstable for human entry, use OSCR360’s tripod to access and photograph the structure’s interior through an exterior window. The camera will self-right itself from any angle.
- When a vehicle is badly burnt or partially crushed following a crash, OSCR360 is small enough to place anywhere inside or under the vehicle to capture imagery.
- When a scene is dark or wet, OSCR360 is still able to effectively capture hi-resolution photos using the system’s HDR capabilities or advanced mode.
Back at headquarters, command staff can mentally refresh themselves by viewing the details from any scene, as well as creating any of the OSCR360 training scenarios previously discussed. Aside from training for fire departments, OSCR360 is also an effective investigation and courtroom presentation tool for fires, crime scenes and vehicle collisions.
