Learning within the fire and rescue services – addressing fire and rescue personnel’s competence in tunnel fire safety

Abstract

Tunnels are a key element of the Norwegian road transport infrastructure. The road tunnel system consists of more than 1200 tunnels with a large variety of safety designs and standards. While many of the Norwegian tunnels are “black holes” in the mountain, located miles away from poorly equipped (i.e., competence, resources) fire departments, other tunnels are more modern and equipped with new technology meant to assist road users and emergency services during rescue and extinguishing operations. Although incident rates are lower in road tunnels than on open roads, the potential consequences of incidents in tunnels are greater by far. This is especially the case in the event of fire, where the enclosed structure and the design of the tunnel hinders the dissipation of smoke and toxic gases and poses difficulty in ensuring safe evacuation for road users. Fire and rescue personnel usually experience high uncertainty, time pressure and high-stake decisions during incidents and fires in tunnels. Too often, they must assess critical features in dynamic environments to determine the best courses of action. Hence, making sense of the situation and understanding mechanisms and interactions in a tunnel fire is challenging and requires personnel equipped with advanced competence. The emergent and dynamic nature of a tunnel fire and the complexity of emergency response operations in road tunnels makes learning and competence development essential aspects of the tunnel fire safety management system. Workplace learning is an inherent part of fire and rescue personnel’s professional development. Both learning through practice and learning through formalized learning activities are crucial for becoming a member of the firefighting team and developing vocational expertise. A main focus in this thesis has been understanding how learning arises through workplace learning activities and practices. Hence, the following main research issue was outlined: How can fire and rescue services be equipped with adequate principles, models and tools to achieve learning and enhance fire and rescue personnel’s competence in tunnel fire safety? Four research questions were developed to support the main issue of this study. The research questions were associated with: 1) understanding the current tunnel fire safety educational framework, 2) investigating fire and rescue personnel’s kinds and levels of competence, 3) investigating the properties of a theoretical model for learning in emergency response work in the context of fire and rescue services, and 4) designing learning activities to enrich learning outcomes and increase competence in tunnel fire safety. The research questions were explored through participant observation, a national questionnaire, a comparative study and a pilot course and were addressed in six papers (i.e., studies): I. A study of the application of a theoretical framework for learning, to assess learning processes based on the cooperation principle, with special attntion paid to road tunnels. II. A study of the application of a systems theory approach to assess the Norwegian tunnel fire safety learning system. III.A study of the application of a systems theory approach to investigate connections between competence requirements amongst fire and rescue personnel and the tunnels’ risk acceptance criterion. IV. A study of fire and rescue personnel’s perceived and actual competence in tunnel fire safety. V. A study of how learning within the fire and rescue services may be conceptualized, focusing on tunnel fire safety. VI. A study of the application of a design science approach to develop a pilot course for incident commanders in tunnel fire safety work. Enhancing the understanding of how the tunnel fire safety learning system can be modelled to increase fire and rescue personnel’s competence is essential for the fire and rescue services’ safety management system. Papers II and III discuss the current tunnel fire safety educational framework and recommend a framework for enhancing competence using a systems theory approach and a model for learning in emergency response work. The studies suggest that the frame conditions for developing efficient learning systems are not yet in place and that the current approach leads to narrow understanding of tunnel fire safety learning practices. The fire and rescue services acknowledge learning activities as fundamental to safety improvement efforts and ensuring that incidents in tunnels are handled adequately. Different kinds of learning activities exist, but there is a gap in the design of the curricula with respect to learning goals, content, instructional techniques and the requirements for effective performance during incidents in tunnels. Overall, it is suggested that development and enforcement of competence constraints for personnel involved in tunnel fire safety work are necessary. Understanding the capability of the fire and rescue services is an essential aspect of the tunnel fire safety management system. Paper IV assesses fire and rescue personnel’s self-evaluations of competence (i.e., perceived) against their taught competence (i.e., actual). An important finding in this study is that the personnel’s kinds and levels of competence vary significantly and that there are discrepancies between the taught practices and the strategies and practices enacted by the personnel when responding to fire events in tunnels. Based on the findings and insights following the analysis of the discrepancies, it is proposed that the content of learning activities should place considerable emphasis on developing decision-making skills and problem-solving abilities so that the personnel are able to read situational cues and assess which choices of action are appropriate to enact during tunnel fire responses. Paper V investigates the properties of a theoretical model for learning in emergency response work and the significant mechanisms that influence the outcome of the learning process (i.e., change, confirmation, comprehension). Findings from this study provide empirical evidence and show that the outcome of the learning process is influenced by the content of what is being learned, the context where learning takes place, fire and rescue personnel’s commitment to learning activities, involvement in decision-making and response and reflection. In addition, reflection is revealed to be the driving force behind the learning process. Theoretical anchoring, the understanding of significant mechanisms and foundational principles for learning are key requirements when designing learning activities and educational programmes aimed at enhancing fire and rescue personnel’s competence in tunnel fire safety. Paper VI illustrates how key learning mechanisms and a design science approach can be integrated to develop a course for incident commanders involved in tunnel fire safety work. For instance, experiences from this study indicate that learning and competence development are derived not from abstract thought, or by thinking and acting uncritically, but rather by integrating thinking and acting through theory and practice and by getting the personnel to critically reflect upon their decisions and response actions. Working with realistic scenarios that progressively increased in complexity in groups and across experiences stimulated constructive debates and discussions questioning the fire department’s approach to tunnel fire safety and the prevailing tactics and strategies.