Seven years ago this month, two airplanes smashed into the World Trade Center Towers, another plowed into the Pentagon, and a fourth crashed in a Pennsylvania field. All passengers and crew members on those flights died. At the Pentagon, 125 people died. In New York, both towers collapsed killing 2,759, of which 406 were emergency responders and 343 were firefighters. It was the most devastating attack by a foreign aggressor on American soil since the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, which left more than 2,400 Americans dead.

FIRE CHIEF wanted to know what has changed in the fire service since and because of those attacks. We put that question to four of our editorial advisory board members: Chief Randy Bruegman, Fresno (Calif.) Fire Department; Chief Mark Burdick, Glendale (Ariz.) Fire Department; Chief Robert Rielage, Wyoming (Ohio) Fire and Rescue; and Chief Mark Wallace, McKinney (Texas) Fire Department.

What is the most important national change that came because of the Sept. 11 attacks?

Bruegman: We have seen a dramatic improvement in the relationship between those in public safety and with other supporting agencies, which are critical in response to such events. We are much better prepared today than we were on Sept. 10, 2001, to collectively respond to emergencies in local jurisdictions, in large part because of the realization we all experienced on Sept. 11.

Burdick: It was probably the understanding that fire is a first responder to both natural and man-made disasters. While that may seem obvious to many, Sept. 11, 2001, helped to solidify that in the minds of most politicians. This created the opportunity to enhance funding to fire departments at the federal level.

Rielage: First is the emphasis with the FIRE Act Grant to encourage grants that benefit both homeland security and day-to-day operations. Examples of this are those grants that enhance communications, interoperability and partnerships. The second involves those of us who benefit from Urban Area Security Initiative funds where a regional approach among all disciplines — fire, EMS, police, public works, health, hospitals, etc. — is emphasized.

Wallace: The creation of the Department of Homeland Security brought the fire service federal grants like we'd never seen before. It brought us the National Incident Management System. We have a new language in the fire service because of DHS. It's helped us unify the management of emergencies into one Incident Command System, although we have a long way to go before it is fully integrated in all levels and types of incident response. It's brought about an expanded level of oversight to pull together an expanded cast of characters in our efforts to effectively respond to emergencies of all kinds.

What's the most important change that didn't take place but should have?

Bruegman: This is a difficult question. The one thing continuing to create challenges at all levels of governments is the bureaucracy of response. I have been involved in several briefings for the White House and DHS post Sept. 11 and one of the issues continually brought up was that the fire service in several states already had an effective mutual aid system … which could be modeled at the national level. The creation of bureaucracies, while important in some respect, can have a devastating impact on the public safety's ability to rapidly deploy resources to needed areas.

Rielage: I'm not sure the federal government fully understands firefighting or, for that matter, how local government operates in the initial phases of a catastrophic incident. I find that even being a part of a Threat Early Warning Group doesn't guarantee that the fire service gets all the information it needs to make the best decisions at a potential terrorist incident when they are the first to arrive.

Another example of this disconnect is the silo effect the federal government has in the National Response Framework. Despite the best efforts of literally hundreds of fire service personnel, each of the Emergency Support Functions is governed by separate federal agencies. I sometimes hear federal officials talk as if the fire service is an unlimited resource that can instantly handle the incident, mass casualties, gross and technical decontamination, evacuation, and a variety of other tasks. In a national emergency with no advanced warning to pre-stage, there are, at minimum, seven of the ESFs that would require some level of fire service response. It is important that these prioritize the fire service's response.

Burdick: Interoperability. We know the technology exists to create the communication link, and we have been driven to have disciplines work together, but overall I believe interoperability is a cultural issue that will take a very long time to overcome. Let's face it, Homeland Security has been moving into a “third service” or “third department” in public safety and has created turf issues on both sides of the traditional fire and law enforcement professions.

Wallace: We are still losing firefighters in the line of duty at approximately the same rate we have for far too many years.

What are the chances that those changes will eventually happen?

Bruegman: If history is a predictor of the future, it will probably take another significant event to occur where response is deemed by the public as lacking before additional changes are brought forward. Minor course corrections need to continue to be made when situations do not go as well as we would like. Unfortunately, we never seem to address the fundamental structural changes necessary to effectively deal with the real issue at hand.

Burdick: If, God forbid, another attack occurs, then obviously our country would be re-energized to move toward an interoperable and cooperative public safety system. Until then, I question whether we will ever move completely to such a state, and the timing will definitely be years from now after the “old dogs” retire and move on. This isn't an indictment of senior folks in public safety; it's an acknowledgement of the fact that in critical times, while our turf lines drop, we also fall back to what we know. The more we practice interoperable communication and operations, the more the next generation will be proficient at it.

Rielage: Dave Paulison, Bill Peterson, Greg Cade and many others have done an outstanding job of proving that fire chiefs are more than chief water squirters. They have shown that the expertise to handle incident command rests with those who use it every day. These gains … need to be continued by a new set of fire service champions within the next administration.

Wallace: It's really in our control. Slow down. Drive defensively. Wear your seatbelt. Improve our cardiovascular fitness. Change our diets. If we could reduce by half the LODDs resulting from heart attacks and driving accidents, we could cut over 25% of our LODDs. It's really up to us.

What changes took place in your department that made a profound difference?

Wallace: We've standardized the physical fitness equipment in every station and encourage on-duty fitness activities. We've enhanced our selection, training, pre-fire planning and other programs within our control. However, I'm not sure that we have seen a profound difference so far.

Burdick: Over the past six years, Glendale has built a hockey arena and a football stadium in our city. The most profound impact of this was the ability of a department our size to receive state and federal funding for equipment and some apparatus. Even our city council provided additional staffing, not because of the new venue's work load as much as it was to protect post 9/11. We have added a tremendous amount of hazmat and related equipment that pre 9/11 we wouldn't have been able to accomplish.

Bruegman: The attitude regarding terrorism and the realization it can happen anywhere. Terrorism has been a discussion point for some time; in fact, the International Association of Fire Chiefs has had a terrorism committee since the mid-1990s. While this was a very active group, the importance placed on the message they were trying to deliver often fell on deaf ears. I don't believe this is the case today. As it has been seen, these events can happen any place at any time and do not have to be driven by someone who is a terrorist from a foreign country. We are all faced with this no matter what size city or jurisdiction we protect or live in.

Rielage: We were fortunate in 2005 to secure a FIRE Act Grant that changed our communications and improved our ability to interact on a daily basis with our neighbors. Prior to that grant, we were rarely called upon to assist our neighbors because we were operating a separate, stand-alone and antiquated communications system. With the grant we were able to join a city/county system. Today, we respond on automatic aid to six communities.

What changes should have taken place locally but have not?

Bruegman: We have spent significant time and effort on the preparation of the emergency operations plan, the practicing of this plan with all departments within the organization, and the interface with other jurisdictions. An emergency operations center, which is designed to conduct this type of operations, is still lacking. As we are faced with continued budget challenges, the opportunity to build an appropriate emergency operations center, which may be used once or twice a year, is often a hard sell.

Wallace: We are having trouble getting our wellness/fitness initiative funded as we have proposed for several years. Rapid growth and now the downturn in the economy have made new programs or enhancements to existing programs hard to get approved.

Rielage: Some jurisdictions are still very colloquial in their thinking. But with the economic downturn, Wyoming, Ohio has recently helped spearhead an 11-department initiative to obtain a grant to hire a fire service consultant to explore cooperative efforts among these departments. These efforts may be as simple as cooperative purchasing to more complex issues such a combined training facility or even some degree of consolidation.

If the grant application is successful, the consultant will be able to give us an assessment regarding the strengths and limitations of fire and EMS delivery in each of the participating communities. These findings will then be factored economically, politically, operationally and administratively to see if it is feasible to pursue any cooperative efforts among the communities. There are those who believe a consolidation is a panacea that will always result in a universal economy of scale. It is equally likely that some of the participating communities will be found to deliver quality and professional fire and EMS with an efficiency that will not be possible through a consolidation. However, it is our intent to fully investigate any of the options that a consultant may recommend.

Burdick: We need a stronger national tie in the fire service. Law enforcement has state- and national-level agencies that can assist and support down to the local level if needed. The fire service needs to make a concentrated push at the federal level to bring FEMA back into its own, with the national fire administration clearly established as not just an administrative branch, but to begin a stockpile of resources, both in equipment and personnel, that can serve as a nationally based response system to support local fire departments. The larger county and municipal departments have been the backbone of support during disasters, but this is eroding as we are facing complex, multi-state disasters that are outstripping the regions' resources. A national fire service agency, similar to an FBI capacity, where a handful of experts could come in to assist, not a Type-1 overhead team but a true federal response versed in and tied to a national support structure.

Are these changes likely?

Burdick: Not very. Who in their right mind would support creating another federal agency, much less one dedicated to the fire service? But I believe it would be an excellent move for our industry and would ultimately provide a vehicle that would strengthen the hard work being done by Paulison and Cade. Perhaps it would get them the support and recognition they need to move us toward interoperability and a focused, national effort relative to all the fire service needs.

Wallace: Yes, because we are committed to the proposals and will continue adjusting and re-justifying our needs until we are successful. Patience is hard, but persistence is mandatory to succeed.

Bruegman: I hope one of the areas funding can assist with is building an emergency operations center. The majority of grant funding supports equipment but does not allow for the construction of these types of facilities. The design and functionality and the security issues need to be addressed in emergency operations centers. Grant funding from the state and federal governments would allow many jurisdictions to construct an EOC, designed appropriately with the proper security, that would ultimately greatly enhance a community's ability to manage a significant incident in its area.

Rielage: Yes, some degree of cooperative effort may result from the study. To what extent this may happen is not just up to the fire chiefs involved. Probably the most interesting question will be funding and whether a separate taxing authority and governing board would be established. The political questions may far outweigh those of the respective fire department.

What has been the most profound change in how your department interacts with the community?

Wallace: Many of our citizens really didn't pay that much attention to the job that firefighters have done for many, many years until so many made the ultimate sacrifice on 9/11. This gave some the understanding that while they run out of burning buildings, we run in to rescue those who can't rescue themselves and to take care of the chaos of the situation.

Bruegman: We are involved with supporting programs (Citizen Corps, CERT, American Red Cross and several others). I do not believe our interaction has changed dramatically, although it has been expanded. What has changed is how the community interacts with us. Sept. 11 provided a point for the public worldwide to see the firefighter and police officer in a different perspective. While we become accustomed to the job we do, when a traumatic incident is viewed by everyone as it takes place, they witness the bravery of those responding. Their perspective of what we do as part of our job and the respect they have for firefighters and police officers dramatically changed. With this comes a great responsibility and this may be the one change we have experienced.

How we interact with the community has been changed due to the community's perspective of us, which they may not have had prior to Sept. 11. We have a great opportunity to use this respect and trust to facilitate our messages throughout the community in a very, very positive way. We can have broad impact on how the community views, not only the department, but all the initiatives the department is engaged in.

Burdick: Following 9/11, I had just taken over as chief. I asked our company officers to take their trucks out as often as possible and visit the local schools. I told them my rationale was two-fold. First, to know the footprint of the schools in their first-due area in the event something else happened. I let them know that it was inexcusable to not know the schools in their area. Second, it was to let the kids know they were safe. If some firefighters were walking around on their campus, it might help the children during the national crisis to know we are here. What occurred was our captains not only went out and familiarized themselves and their crews with the schools, but many of them began to have lunch with the kids, visit classrooms impromptu and just integrate in a way that only our Fire Pals had done before. Many of our companies continue this practice today. They will go by a school and drop in, have lunch and spend some time with the kids. This is a testament to the type of folks who seek a career in the fire service and to the ability for them to take things to the next level.

Rielage: In the past five years, the department has developed an excellent rapport not only with the citizens of Wyoming and its surrounding areas, but our partners in homeland security including building, police, public works and health. We have become the lead agency for emergency management in the city and conducted four annual exercises with these agencies and other outside public and private partners. The general public expects the seamless delivery of emergency services, whatever the incident may be. The challenge remains to keep every key participant trained to the appropriate level and cognizant of their role in the team effort.

How did your leadership style change after the Sept. 11 attacks?

Bruegman: This is an excellent question. I do not think my leadership style changed, but my approach to issues over the past several years has become more direct. To articulate those issues regarding firefighter safety, staffing and deployment have become a necessity for me as a chief officer. I find I am more direct than I was prior to Sept. 11. A change for me is a new understanding of how I define success versus significance. Many of us who have become chief officers have reached that pinnacle in our career where we think we have a level of significance because of the rank we hold. Sept. 11 really forced me to question this viewpoint. In fact, today my measure of success is not by the rank that I hold, but by the significance I can have on the other people I work with and those I mentor and/or coach.

At the end of day, what we leave will be based upon those people we have had a positive impact. We will not be measured on the rank we have attained within the organization but on the lives we have made a difference in.

Rielage: I don't believe that 9/11 has caused a change in my personal management style. Rather, it has given me a determination to prepare all of our partners for the next attack, whenever it may come. Few people know that my son Dale, now a Navy commander and a Virginia career certified firefighter and EMT, was one of the military personnel decorated for their actions at the Pentagon on 9/11. Knowing his story and my own experience traveling to the World Trade Center within a week of the attacks in support of the Ohio USAR effort has hardened my resolve that we will be prepared to overcome anything handed to the fire service in the future.

Wallace: I'm not sure how to answer this. There were immediate changes as a response to the situations we thought we were going to face. In the long term, we all have undergone an evolutionary process. I've been pushing hard on ICS training and actually conducting ICS 300 and 400 classes to get those who need the training through it effectively. I don't know if my style has changed, but I emphasize strategic planning, master planning, emergency management, mentoring, the effective use of unified command and other principles of NIMS. It's about walking the talk. It's about setting high standards for the future and keeping the vision of an effective future in the forefront. I hope it's more of what I've done in the past, but that must be left to others to decide. I have lots of good people working with me. They are the one's who could determine this best.

Burdick: I can't say that my style changed, but it impacted the thought process in almost everything we do. Something as simple as station security versus community access has come to the forefront. Things like leaving an apparatus running unattended at an EMS scene now warrant dialogue and direction to captains and crews about “national security.” Many of the things that we took for granted as being accessible and imbedded in our communities made us change the way we think and act, which drives some of our leadership philosophy and direction. The world isn't warm and fuzzy anymore.