On October 13, 2024, a Fairfax County (VA) firefighter sustained burn injuries during a live fire training evolution at the Fire & Rescue Academy. In response, Fire Chief John Butler activated a Significant Incident Investigation Team (SIIT) tasked with examining the circumstances surrounding the injury, identifying contributing factors, and recommending corrective actions. The investigation began with extensive interviews with participants and instructors, a review of operational and training policies, and an analysis of the training event’s planning and execution. This phase identified multiple operational, procedural, and cultural factors that contributed to the incident. The investigation concluded with the help of the Fire Safety Research Institute (FSRI) performing live fire training experiments to recreate the fire behavior to learn what occurred to help guide policy, procedural, and training changes to prevent it from happening in the future.
- Significant Incident Investigation Team
- FCFRD SIIT Report Burn Injury
- Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department Live Fire Training Experiments
- SIIT Blue Sheet
- SIIT Blue Sheet Video