International Fire Instructors Workshop - Revinge, Sweden, May 2008

On the 13-16 May, 2008 a workshop was held at the Swedish Rescue Services Agency College in Revinge. Twelve leading Fire Instructors from a number of countries were invited by Dr Stefan Svensson to participate in this four day International Fire Instructors Workshop.

The object of the workshop was to bring together the wealth of knowledge that has been gained during the last decade in the fields of compartment fire behaviour, ventilation tactics and suppression techniques. Dr Svensson recognized that this increase in knowledge has been gained from people with different practical experience and perspectives. The workshop itself consisted of theory and practical presentations by each of the participants.

The participants included CFBT pioneers from Australia, UK, USA, Poland, Germany, France, and Spain. This was mixed with Fire Engineers, Scientists and specialists in the field of tactical ventilation from Sweden, UK, USA and Canada.

This special gathering proved to be an inspirational meeting that united many different perspectives and approaches to these core firefighting issues. The participants held fundamental agreement on most of the key issues at the beginning of the workshop. The stimulating and enlightening differences of opinion in regard to some of the more leading edge concepts proved to be the most progressive element of the gathering.  I believe that it is fair to say that every member of the workshop was able to pass on certain aspects of their experience and perspective that enlightened the group as a whole. The open minded approach resulted in an educational experience that passed on a wealth of knowledge gained from a very diverse experience base.