While the national media has moved on to other topics, fire chiefs along the Gulf Coast still are dealing with the effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The manmade disaster offered many lessons learned, as FIRE CHIEF editors discovered from the chiefs who worked the incident along the Gulf Coast and in unified command centers. Editors learned that fire leadership struggled to work with BP — which had control over response and clean-up efforts — and often took matters into their own hands to stave off an environmental catastrophe in their communities.

In this podcast series, chiefs involved in the Deepwater Horizon response and clean-up efforts share their experiences and discuss the problems with a unified command structure overseen by a corporation, instead of by state and local first-responder agencies. They also provided lessons learned on interagency communications, new information-sharing programs, and statewide uniformity when dealing with natural and manmade disasters.

Listen now:

1. Alabama Chiefs Face Off With BP Over Deepwater HorizonOil Spill
2. Volunteer Chief Takes Steps to Protect Community from Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
3. Stafford Act Irrelevance Altered Command Structure Operating Paradigm, Florida Chief Says
4. Coast Guard's Sense of Urgency Too Slow for Fire Service, Chief Says
5. Oil Spill Offers Real-Life Test of Virtual USA
6. Housing Temporary Laborers Worsens Responders' Headaches