Preparing for fires where neighborhoods meet the woods
Members from our Jackson Township and Millstone Township shops joined firefighters from across New Jersey for the IAFF’s Responding to the Interface program, hosted by our neighbors in Monroe Township, IAFF Local 3170.
Our members Steven Porth, Nicholas Havens, and James Harper of the Jackson Township Shop, along with Christopher Schmidt of the Millstone Township Shop, attended the International Association of Fire Fighters’ (IAFF) Responding to the Interface program in Monroe Township.
Hosted by our neighbors in IAFF Local 3170, the program brought our members together with fellow IAFF and Professional Firefighters Association of New Jersey (PFANJ) members from around the state.
The wildland-urban interface is where homes and other development meet or intermingle with wooded areas and vegetation. A fire in that setting can threaten both the surrounding landscape and the people and buildings in its path. Preparing for those conditions is part of protecting the neighborhoods we serve.
Here in New Jersey, the Forest Fire Service emphasizes wildfire awareness for people living within or beside forested areas. For our communities, that makes this training relevant close to home. Preparing for an interface fire means considering the surrounding landscape along with the homes and people who may be in its path.
The IAFF’s Responding to the Interface program is designed to help structural firefighters prepare for these incidents. Its training addresses firefighter safety, command and control, and the strategies and tactics used to defend structures threatened by wildfire.
The training in Monroe Township included classroom instruction and practical work outdoors. Participants reviewed course material together and worked with hose lines near homes and wooded areas. Bringing those settings together connects the discussion in the classroom with the places firefighters may be called to protect.
Learning together, serving our communities
Training alongside firefighters from other departments gives our members an opportunity to learn with colleagues who share the same responsibilities in neighboring communities. It also brings our Jackson Township and Millstone Township shops together around a challenge that crosses municipal boundaries.
Gatherings like this are a practical part of our connection through the IAFF and PFANJ. They create space for members from different local unions to ask questions, compare experience, and focus on the work we have in common. We value that opportunity to learn from one another and build relationships beyond our own firehouses.
Continuing education is part of the preparation our communities rely on. Programs such as Responding to the Interface help keep attention on the decisions firefighters face when wildfire threatens homes, including the safety of residents and the crews responding.
We thank IAFF Local 3170 for hosting, the IAFF for providing the program, and our fellow IAFF and PFANJ members for taking part. We recognize Steven, Nicholas, James, and Christopher for representing IAFF Local 3874 and making time for this training.
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