ALERRT tapped by FEMA to develop “Fire as a Weapon” emergency response training program

Staff Reports

SAN MARCOS – The Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) center at Texas State University and the National Fire Protection Association have been awarded a grant by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to develop a state-of-the-art eLearning program to train fire and law enforcement personnel on responding to Fire as a Weapon (FAAW) events.

The $400,000 FEMA grant will enable ALERRT to develop a 4-hour eLearning version of FAAW integrated response training to disseminate nationally. ALERRT has already developed a 16-hour in-person version of the FAAW integrated response training, from which the eLearning course will be derived. 

FAAW is the use of fire, smoke or flammable materials to confound first responders to an incident. Criminals and terrorists have used FAAW in many incidents, such as the well-known 1993 Branch Davidian standoff near Waco. FAAW incidents are continually evolving, both in magnitude and frequency, and the training to mitigate FAAW must also continually evolve.

In early March the FAAW integrated response course was delivered in Arkansas to the Fayetteville Police and Fire Departments and the Springdale Police Department. The ALERRT eLearning team filmed the course presentations, the practical application workstations and the scenarios. This footage will enable to the team to script and streamline for a four-hour eLearning course, with an anticipated completion date of September.

The FAAW integrated response course addresses the knowledge, skills and abilities required to respond to and stop an attack swiftly and effectively. This includes stopping the attackers, establishing unified incident command, extinguishing the fire, rendering medical attention to casualties and facilitating the prompt evacuation of the injured. The target audience for this course includes federal, state, tribal and local law enforcement, fire personnel, medical personnel and telecommunicators who would potentially respond to and manage a FAAW incident.

The ALERRT program at Texas State was created and developed with the basic goal of providing proven training to first responders in order to better protect their communities and save lives. The training must be relevant, standardized and constantly evaluated to ensure that the latest threats are addressed. It encompasses realistic scenarios to prepare first responders to act, not simply have an awareness of this clear and present threat.