Human Factors - 2024 Week of Remembrance

The last topic is about human factors and how we can honor the fallen through learning. While the Week of Remembrance was spent reflecting on the 2018 Mendocino Complex, the last day (July 6, 2024) is also spent remembering the Fallen 14 who lost their lives on the Storm King Mountain 30 years ago (1994) in the South Canyon Fire.

“How do we honor these days and the people involved through learning? How can we better equip ourselves to recognize and navigate within similar events when they repeat?”

“The Mendocino Entrapment Facilitated Learning Analysis closing remarks observe that adaptability and planning led firefighters to make life-saving decisions in the face of extreme fire behavior and incredible urgency. Likewise, each fire season firefighters effectively maneuver through countless uncertain and high-risk situations. The same human factors we associate with an unintended or undesirable outcome in one instance, may also be our greatest asset in another situation. That is to say, the human factor is present in everything we do – independent of the outcome. To be honest students of fire, we, the fire community, must also be students of our own thinking. Through reflection, curiosity, humble inquiry and open dialogue, our greatest asset can flourish.”

There is a plethora of environmental factors that are out of our control such as weather, terrain, other drivers, etc. However, we have influence over human factors such as our physical fitness, which is frequently the main focus of fire training. We must also take time to invest in our mental fitness as well.

Take time to build awareness and understanding of the way you and your team think. If you are interested, click here for further resources. Explore the following questions and feel free to engage in the comments.

• Beliefs – How do you respond when someone voices a value or belief contrary to your own? What role does curiosity play in maintaining a willingness to challenge your own beliefs or better understand someone else’s? 
• Communication – How can we include quieter voices in all conversations? How do you know when you need to speak up?
• Perspective – How do you systematically check for blind spots in your thinking? How do we keep our ears and minds open to new ideas?
• Planning – How can reflection improve future planning? How could your planning become more robust if you were to pause and consider the above questions about beliefs, communication, and perspective before taking action?
• Training – What would it look like to dedicate more time and effort to our mental fitness? Take a moment with your team and brainstorm some ideas for daily mental fitness “PT” (e.g., tactical decision games, sand tables, incident reviews, etc.).