Fire Officer I cheat sheet

Progressive discipline sequence: documented verbal counseling, written reprimand, suspension, demotion, termination; each step requires written notice and an opportunity to respond.

Grievance timelines are set by the labor agreement or department policy; missing a filing deadline generally waives the grievance unless the contract states otherwise.

Just-cause termination requires documentation of the rule violated, prior notice of the rule, an investigation, and consistent penalty treatment compared with similar past cases.

A training record should capture date, instructor, topic, hours, and evaluation method; unrecorded training is difficult to defend as delivered.

Probationary employees typically have reduced grievance and appeal rights; confirm the contractual probation length before extending or terminating.

Reasonable suspicion drug or alcohol testing requires documented, articulable observations (behavior, appearance, speech) recorded before the test request.

Performance improvement plans need measurable objectives, a defined review period, and a named evaluator to be defensible.

Promotional processes must follow the posted announcement; changing weights, eligibility, or scoring after the announcement creates an appealable defect.

Harassment complaints require immediate intake, confidentiality limits, a prompt impartial investigation, and written findings to both parties.

Public records requests: acknowledge in writing, log the date received, and apply only exemptions the statute actually authorizes; redact rather than withhold where possible.

Media at an emergency scene operate from a designated media area outside the hot zone; the incident commander or PIO approves all releases.

A single public information officer speaks for the department during major incidents; all other members refer inquiries to the PIO.

Political activity rules for career members derive from civil service and local ordinance, not only from the fire code; verify before endorsing candidates.

Community risk reduction programs are justified by incident data: target the occupancy type and cause code with the highest frequency and loss.

Mutual aid and automatic aid agreements must specify cost recovery, liability, and command authority in writing before an incident occurs.

Fire station tours, school visits, and open houses are documented with attendance and contact data to support budget and grant requests.

Presenting to a governing body: state the problem in one sentence, give cost of inaction, then the requested action and its fiscal impact.

Budget categories: personnel (salaries, overtime, benefits), operations (fuel, supplies, maintenance), capital (apparatus, buildings), and debt service.

Overtime projection = average overtime hours per shift x shifts per year x average hourly rate, adjusted for vacancy and leave rates.

Cost of a vacancy can be estimated as filled-position cost minus recruit and overtime costs incurred to cover the position.

Records retention periods come from the state records schedule; destruction requires documented authorization and a destruction log.

A purchase requisition precedes a purchase order; the PO encumbers funds and must match the invoice, receiving report, and approved specification.

Run charts and control charts distinguish normal variation from a real trend; act on special-cause signals, not on single data points.

Standard operating procedures should state purpose, scope, responsibilities, procedure steps, and a review date.

Span of control for emergency operations is commonly three to seven subordinates per supervisor, with five as the working target.

Annual reports should use response-time percentiles and unit-hour utilization rather than averages alone, since averages hide outliers.

Occupancy classifications drive inspection frequency; high-hazard occupancies (assembly, hazardous materials, institutional) are inspected more often than low-hazard storage.

Right of entry: consent, warrant, or a recognized emergency exception; an administrative warrant is used when consent is refused for a code inspection.

Fire cause classifications: accidental, natural, incendiary, undetermined, and explosive; the classification is a finding, not a guess.

Origin determination uses fire patterns: V-patterns, charring depth, alligatoring, and protected areas, corroborated by witness and alarm data.

Spoliation risk means evidence must be photographed, documented, and secured before overhaul disturbs the area.

A notice of violation should identify the code section, the specific deficiency, the correction required, and a compliance deadline with appeal rights.

Knox box and access records are part of pre-incident planning; inspection files should record access method and any changes.

Chain of custody for fire evidence records every transfer: who, when, where, and the purpose of each transfer.

Incident command establishes command, scene size-up, and a single incident action plan; command is transferred only face to face with a briefing.

First-arriving officer size-up covers occupancy, construction, fire location and extent, life hazard, exposures, and water supply.

Alarm assignments are matched to the incident type; a working fire typically escalates to a greater alarm when the initial assignment cannot handle the fire within its capacity.

Accountability: every member entering the hazard zone is tracked by name, assignment, and entry time, and is reported to the incident commander.

Rapid intervention: a stand-by crew of at least two members is established when members are operating in the hazard zone.

Strategy is offensive or defensive; the transition point is when the risk to members exceeds the value of a savable property, or when structural stability is in doubt.

Response time is measured from dispatch to arrival; turnout time is dispatch to apparatus leaving quarters; total reflex time includes both.

Post-incident analysis compares the incident action plan with outcomes, using recorded radio traffic and timeline data rather than recollection.

Mutual aid response requires a common communications plan and a designated staging area before units arrive.

Two-in/two-out: interior structural firefighting requires at least two members inside and two outside, unless a known life hazard justifies immediate rescue action.

SCBA use is required in immediately dangerous to atmosphere environments; the officer verifies air status and exit time before entry.

Rehabilitation begins after the first working period or the depletion of one SCBA cylinder, and includes rest, hydration, and medical monitoring.

Heat stress indicators include heart rate, core temperature, and symptom check; members showing confusion or nausea are removed from operations.

Exposure documentation: record incident number, date, duration, products of combustion, and PPE used; this supports presumptive-illness claims.

PPE inspection includes helmet, hood, coat, pants, gloves, boots, and SCBA; damaged or contaminated gear is removed from service and tagged.

Vehicle operations: seat belts are required for all occupants, and the driver of an emergency vehicle is responsible for due regard for others' safety.

Infectious disease exposure requires immediate reporting, source evaluation where permitted, and post-exposure follow-up per the department's exposure control plan.

Annual fitness and medical surveillance requirements are set by NFPA 1582-style programs and the department's physician; results are confidential.