Firefighter Podcast

This mini series opens a door into the International Fire Instructors Workshop 2026 in Australia, a gathering that for nearly two decades has been built on closed room conversations, honest challenge and the exchange of experience between some of the most respected fire instructors in the world. 
With the full support of the organisers and attendees, these recordings bring that environment into the open. The theme this year is Back to Basics, a deliberate return to the fundamentals that genuinely change outcomes on the fireground and in the training environment. What you are hearing is live and unfiltered, complete with the movement and background of a real working room, because that is exactly where the learning happens and why it is so valuable.
Alongside the operational learning sits a clear commitment to longevity in the job and reducing the hidden risks that come with realistic fire behaviour training. The support from Enduro Protect and De Wipe reflects a practical approach to contamination control and long term health, based on repeated use in live burn environments and consistent performance over time. If we are serious about pushing our competence and exposing ourselves to high fidelity training, we have to be just as disciplined about protecting ourselves from the long term consequences of that exposure.
This first episode features Karel Lambert, Division Chief at Brussels Fire Department, presenting on air consumption during tunnel firefighting. His session is a detailed and operationally grounded exploration of how air use is affected by workload, heat, movement, profile and decision making in one of the most demanding environments we face. 
For those undertaking professional development, CPD is available for listening to this episode through the Institute of Fire Engineers - email [email protected]
You can also download the full presentation using the link HERE to study the data, models and learning points in greater depth.
Access all episodes, documents, GIVEAWAYS & debriefs HERE
Podcast Apparel, Hoodies, Flags, Mugs HERE
 our partners supporting this episode.
GORE-TEX Professional Clothing
FIRST TACTICAL- tactical gear for elite operators
MSA The Safety Company
JAFCO
IDEX
FIRE & EVACUATION SERVICE LTD 
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***The views expressed in this episode are those of the individual speakers. Our partners are not responsible for the content of this episode and does not warrant its accuracy or completeness.***
Please support the podcast and its future by clicking HERE and joining our Patreon Crew

In this episode, I sit down with Scott Butler, a serving UK firefighter who has quietly built a life around choosing difficult things on purpose. Scott shares the pivotal moment in 2006 when joining the fire service forced him to grow fast, take responsibility, and stop making excuses. That turning point shaped not just his career, but his identity, and set him on a path where challenge became a way of understanding himself rather than something to avoid.
Our conversation goes far beyond adventure headlines. We talk about ultra-distance challenges, rowing the Atlantic, desert races, long lonely days where quitting would make complete sense, and the mindset required to keep moving anyway. Along the way, we explore fear, ageing, doubt, discipline, charity, and why firefighters often feel most at home in uncomfortable places. There is also a surprisingly important discussion about bum butter, because it turns out the right anti-chafing cream can overcome all kinds of horrific challenges. This is a grounded, honest, and funny conversation about resilience, agency, and backing yourself without needing applause.
Find Scott HERE
Access all episodes, documents, GIVEAWAYS & debriefs HERE
Podcast Apparel, Hoodies, Flags, Mugs HERE
 our partners supporting this episode.
GORE-TEX Professional Clothing
FIRST TACTICAL- tactical gear for elite operators
MSA The Safety Company
JAFCO
IDEX
FIRE & EVACUATION SERVICE LTD 
Send a text
Support the show
***The views expressed in this episode are those of the individual speakers. Our partners are not responsible for the content of this episode and does not warrant its accuracy or completeness.***
Please support the podcast and its future by clicking HERE and joining our Patreon Crew

This short debrief episode examines the Bethnal Green Road fire of 20 July 2004, a commercial premises fire in East London that resulted in the deaths of two London firefighters, Billy Faust and Adam Meere. Crews attended what initially presented as a working shop fire and committed under Breathing Apparatus into a basement environment characterised by heavy textile fuel loading, restricted access, and limited ventilation.
This episode focuses on exploring how fire behaviour can change when ventilation-limited conditions are involved. Particular attention is given to tactical ventilation, positive pressure ventilation, and positive pressure attack, and how airflow interacts with ventilation profiles in modern incidents. 
Bethnal Green Road remains a critical case study for all firefighters - a FREE downloadable training document accompanies this episode for crews to aid and facilitate training sessions - DOWNLOAD IT HERE
Access all episodes, documents, GIVEAWAYS & debriefs HERE
Podcast Apparel, Hoodies, Flags, Mugs HERE
 our partners supporting this episode.
GORE-TEX Professional Clothing
FIRST TACTICAL- tactical gear for elite operators
MSA The Safety Company
JAFCO
IDEX
FIRE & EVACUATION SERVICE LTD 
Send a text
Support the show
***The views expressed in this episode are those of the individual speakers. Our partners are not responsible for the content of this episode and does not warrant its accuracy or completeness.***
Please support the podcast and its future by clicking HERE and joining our Patreon Crew

I sit down with Chris Case, a firefighter who spent 25 years in Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service before making the leap to Canada and becoming Fire Chief of Chatham-Kent in Ontario.
This is not a career-timeline conversation. It is a deep exploration of leadership, identity, and the personal cost of doing complex work in complex systems.
We talk about moving beyond the cookie-cutter career, the curse of competence, and what happens when professionalism becomes a golden cage. Chris shares hard-won lessons from counter-terrorism, multi-agency command, senior leadership, and governance, but also from parenting, failure, anxiety, and learning when to stop optimising everything.
We explore why managers enforce rules but leaders enforce values, why undefined expectations become premeditated resentments, and why senior officers eventually trade tools for words. We talk about ambition, burnout, anger as fuel, and the danger of confusing progress with peace.
This episode is for firefighters at every rank who are trying to do meaningful work without betraying themselves in the process.
Connect with Chris Case HERE
Access all episodes, documents, GIVEAWAYS & debriefs HERE
Podcast Apparel, Hoodies, Flags, Mugs HERE
 our partners supporting this episode.
GORE-TEX Professional Clothing
FIRST TACTICAL- tactical gear for elite operators
MSA The Safety Company
JAFCO
IDEX
FIRE & EVACUATION SERVICE LTD 
Send us a text
Support the show
***The views expressed in this episode are those of the individual speakers. Our partners are not responsible for the content of this episode and does not warrant its accuracy or completeness.***
Please support the podcast and its future by clicking HERE and joining our Patreon Crew

On this episode of we take a slow, deliberate look at the Old Albert Mill incident in Whitworth, Lancashire, from 15 May 2009. This is a structured incident debrief built directly from the original accident investigation report, with large sections read verbatim to preserve timings, context, and operational reality. The focus is not on blame or judgement, but on understanding how breathing apparatus operations, withdrawal under pressure, low visibility movement, and training culture intersected during a real incident that resulted in a firefighter injury.
This episode is designed as a learning tool. Alongside the audio debrief, an incident debrief training document has been created for crews to use on station. 
It follows a clear structure, sets out critical information from the incident, and poses decision points and discussion prompts to help firefighters and officers reflect on what they would do if faced with a similar incident tonight. 
You can find the downloadable debrief document via the link below and use it to support watch-based discussions, training sessions, and professional development.
LINK FOR TRAINING DOCUMENT
Access all episodes, documents, GIVEAWAYS & debriefs HERE
Podcast Apparel, Hoodies, Flags, Mugs HERE
 our partners supporting this episode.
GORE-TEX Professional Clothing
FIRST TACTICAL- tactical gear for elite operators
MSA The Safety Company
JAFCO
IDEX
FIRE & EVACUATION SERVICE LTD 
Send us a text
Support the show
***The views expressed in this episode are those of the individual speakers. Our partners are not responsible for the content of this episode and does not warrant its accuracy or completeness.***
Please support the podcast and its future by clicking HERE and joining our Patreon Crew