Student Competency Record

Public Safety

Maine Fire Training Fire Fighter 1 and 2

Standards and Competencies

Student / School Year
Center/Region / Instructor Signature

Rating Scale

1 Cannot perform

2 Can perform with supervision

3 Can perform with limited supervision

4 Can perform without supervision

5 Can teach others

Students will be expected to achieve a satisfactory rating (one of the three highest marks) on the Student Competency Record rating scale on at least 80% of the required competencies listed below.

/ Maine Fire Training Fire Fighter 1 and 2 Competencies / Date / Rating /
1. The History and Orientation of the Fire Service
a.  Describe the qualifications and guidelines in becoming a fire fighter.
b.  Compare and contrast the roles and responsibilities of Fire Fighter I and II.
c.  Define the roles within the fire department.
d.  Describe the organization of the fire service including fire department governance and working with other public service organizations.
e.  Relate the history of the fire service.
2. Fire Fighter Safety
a.  Define fire safety as it relates to injury prevention, standards and procedures, personnel, training, and equipment.
b.  Describe safety during training, emergency response in apparatus or private vehicles, at emergency scenes, at the fire station and outside the workplace.
c.  Describe and demonstrate personal protective equipment (PPE) as it relates to structural firefighting and specialized PPE, donning and doffing PPE and caring for PPE.
d.  Describe respiratory protection, respiratory hazards of fires and other toxic environments, the different types of breathing apparatus, SCBA standards and regulation, limitations of SCBA, components of an SCBA, safety precautions for SCBA and preparing for emergency situations.
e.  Demonstrate skip-breathing technique, donning and doffing SCBA and face piece,
f.  Describe and demonstrate an SCBA inspection and maintenance procedure, servicing and replacing an SCBA cylinder, replace an SCBA cylinder on another fire fighter, refilling an SCBA cylinder and cleaning and sanitizing an SCBA.
3. Fire Service Communications
a.  Define the communications center, telecommunications, communications facility requirements, communications centre equipment, computer-aided dispatch, voice recorder and activity logs and call response and dispatch.
b.  Describe and demonstrate receiving and dispatching emergency calls, call receipt, location validation, call classification and prioritization, unit selection, dispatch, operational support and coordination and status tracking and deployment management.
c.  Describe and demonstrate radio systems, radio equipment, radio operations and using a radio.
d.  Describe and demonstrate obtaining the necessary information required coding procedures, consequences of incomplete and inaccurate reports and using the NFIRS data entry tool.
4. Incident Command System (ICS)
a.  Describe the history of the incident command system.
b.  Describe the characteristics of the incident command system as it relates to jurisdictional authority, all-risk and all-hazard system, everyday applicability, unity of command, span of control, modular organization, common terminology, integrated communications, consolidated incident action plans, designated incident facilities and resource management.
c.  Describe the ICS organization as it relates to command and general staff functions.
d.  Describe standard ICS concepts and terminology as it relates to single resources and crews, branches, and location designators.
e.  Describe the implementation of ICS and standard position titles.
f.  Describe working within the ICS as it relates to the responsibilities of the first arriving fire fighters, confirming the command and the transfer of command.
5. Fire Behavior
a.  Define the chemistry of fire In relation to, what is fire, states of matter, fuels, types of energy, electrical energy, conservation of energy, and conditions needed for fire, chemistry of combustion, products of combustion, fire spread, methods of extinguishment and classes of fire.
b.  Define the characteristics of solid-fuel fires, solid-fuel fire development, characteristics of a room-and-content fire and special consideration.
c.  Define the characteristics of liquid-fuel fires
d.  Define the characteristics of gas-fueled fires, vapor density, flammability limits, boiling liquid expanding vapor explosions (BLEVE).
e.  Describe and demonstrate smoke reading by determining the key attributes of smoke, what is influencing the key attributes, the rate of change, predict the event and reading through a door.
6. Building Construction
a.  Identify the occupancy and contents.
b.  Describe the types of construction materials, masonry, concrete, steel, other metals, glass, gypsum board, wood and plastics.
c.  Describe the types of construction, type I construction fire resistive, type II construction noncombustible, type III construction ordinary, type IV construction heavy timber and type V construction wood frame.
d.  Describe building components such as foundations, floors and ceilings, roofs, trusses, walls, doors and windows, interior finishes and floor coverings, manufactured housing and buildings under construction or demolition.
e.  Describe pre-incident planning and incident size-up.
7. Portable Fire Extinguishers
a.  Identify the purposes of fire extinguishers in incipient fires and special extinguishing agents.
b.  Define the classes of fire, class A, B, C, D and K.
c.  Define the classification of fire extinguishers.
d.  Identify the labeling of fire extinguishers by the traditional lettering system and the pictograph labeling system.
e.  Describe fire extinguisher placement, classifying area hazards and determining the most appropriate placement of fire extinguishers.
f.  Describe methods of fire extinguishment by cooling the fuel, cutting off the supply of oxygen or interrupting the chain of reactions.
g.  Describe the types of extinguishing agents such as water, dry chemicals, carbon dioxide, foam, wet chemicals, halogenated agents and dry powder.
h.  Describe fire extinguisher design and portable fire extinguisher components.
i.  Describe fire extinguisher characteristics such as water, dry chemical, carbon dioxide, class B foam, wet chemical, halogenated and dry powder extinguishers and agents.
j.  Describe and demonstrate the use of fire extinguishers, locating a fire extinguisher, selecting the proper fire extinguisher, transporting a fire extinguisher, the basic steps of fire extinguisher operations and ensure your personal safety.
k.  Describe and demonstrate the care of fire extinguishers, inspection, maintenance, recharging and hydrostatic testing.
8. Fire Fighter Tools and Equipment
a.  Identify and demonstrate general considerations as it relates to safety, conditions of use/operating conditions and effective use.
b.  Describe the functions of rotating, pushing/pulling, prying/spreading, striking, cutting, multiple-function and special-use tools.
c.  Describe the phases of use in response/size-up, forcible entry, interior firefighting tools and equipment and overhaul tools and equipment.
d.  Describe tool staging.
e.  Describe and demonstrate maintenance by cleaning and inspecting salvage, overhaul, ventilation, hand and power tools and equipment.
9. Ropes and Knots
a.  Describe the types of rope including life safety, personal escape and utility ropes.
b.  Describe rope materials such as natural and synthetic fibers.
c.  Describe rope construction including twisted and braided, kernmantle and dynamic and static rope.
d.  Describe rope strengths.
e.  Describe and identify technical rescue hardware, harnesses and rope rescue.
f.  Describe and demonstrate rope maintenance as it relates to the care for the rope, cleaning, inspecting, and storage of the rope.
g.  Describe and demonstrate knots terminology, safety knots, hitches, loop knots and bends.
h.  Demonstrate hoisting a(n) axe, pike pole, ladder, charged hose line, uncharged hose line and exhaust fans or power tools.
10. Response and Size-Up
a.  Describe and demonstrate response as it relates to alarm receipt, riding the apparatus, emergency response, prohibited practices, dismounting a stopped apparatus and traffic safety on the scene.
b.  Describe and demonstrate arrival at the scene as it relates to the personnel accountability system and controlling utilities.
c.  Describe and demonstrate size-up as it relates to managing information, probabilities and resources.
d.  Describe incident action plans for rescue, exposure protection, confinement, extinguishment and salvage and overhaul.
11. Forcible Entry
a.  Describe forcible entry situations.
b.  Identify and demonstrate forcible entry tools general tool safety, general carrying tips, general maintenance tips and types of forcible entry tools.
c.  Describe doors, basic door construction, construction materials and frame designs.
d.  Describe windows safety, glass construction and frame designs.
e.  Describe locks, parts of a door lock, parts of a padlock, safety, types of locks and forcing entry through security gates and windows.
f.  Describe and demonstrate breaching walls and floors, load-bearing walls/non-load-bearing walls, exterior walls, interior walls and floors.
g.  Describe forcible entry and salvage before entry and after entry.
12. Ladders
a.  Describe the primary and secondary functions of a ladder.
b.  Describe the basic and extension ladder components.
c.  Identify the types of ladders including aerial apparatus and portable ladders.
d.  Describe and demonstrate inspection, maintenance, cleaning and service testing of portable ladders.
e.  Describe and demonstrate ladder safety as it relates to general safety requirements, lifting and moving ladders, placement of ground ladders, working on a ladder, rescue and ladder damage.
f.  Demonstrate the use of portable ladders by selecting the ladder, removing the ladder from the apparatus, lifting ladders, carrying ladders, placing a ladder, raising a ladder, securing a ladder, climbing a ladder, dismounting the ladder and working from a ladder.
g.  Perform a chimney check.
13. Search and Rescue
a.  Describe and demonstrate search and rescue operations by coordinating search and rescue with fire suppression, doing a search and rescue size-up, search and rescue coordination and search priorities.
b.  Describe and demonstrate primary and secondary search techniques.
c.  Describe and demonstrate search safety, risk management, search and rescue equipment and methods to determine whether an area is tenable.
d.  Describe and demonstrate rescue techniques including shelter-in –place, exit assist, simple victim carries, emergency drags, assisting a person down a ground ladder and removal of a victim by ladders.
14. Ventilation
a.  Describe the benefits of proper ventilation.
b.  Describe backdraft and flashover considerations.
c.  Describe factors that affect ventilation including convection, mechanical ventilation and wind and atmospheric forces.
d.  Identify building construction considerations in relations to fire-resistive, ordinary and wood frame construction.
e.  Describe tactical priorities in venting for life safety, fire containment and property conservation.
f.  Identify location and extent of smoke and fire conditions.
g.  Describe and demonstrate types of ventilation including horizontal, mechanical and vertical.
h.  Describe basic indicators of roof collapse as it relates to roof construction and design.
i.  Describe and demonstrate vertical ventilation techniques in regard to roof ventilation, tools used in vertical ventilation and types of roof cuts.
j.  Describe and/or demonstrate special considerations when ventilating concrete roofs, metal roofs, basements, high-rise buildings, windowless buildings and large buildings.
k.  Describe and demonstrate equipment maintenance.
15. Water Supply
a.  Define water supply.
b.  Describe rural water supplies, static sources of water, mobile water supply apparatus, portable tanks and tanker shuttles.
c.  Describe municipal water systems, water sources, water treatment facilities and water distribution systems.
d.  Describe wet-barrel hydrants, dry-barrel hydrants and fire hydrant locations.
e.  Demonstrate fire hydrant operations by turning on a hydrant and shutting down a hydrant.
f.  Describe and demonstrate the maintenance, inspection and testing of fire hydrants.
16. Fire Hose, Nozzles, Streams, and Foam
a.  Describe fire hydraulics relating to flow, pressure, friction loss, elevation pressure and water hammer.
b.  Describe fire hoses, functions of fire hoses, sizes of hose, hose construction, hose couplings, attack hose and supply hose.
c.  Describe and/or demonstrate hose care, maintenance and inspection by identifying the causes and prevention of hose damage, cleaning and maintaining hoses and hose inspections.
d.  Identify hose appliances including wyes, water thief, Siamese connection, adaptors, reducers, hose jacket, hose roller, hose clamp and valves.
e.  Describe and/or demonstrate hose rolls including straight or storage roll, single-doughnut roll, twin-doughnut roll and the self-locking twin-doughnut roll.
f.  Demonstrate fire hose evolutions including supply line evolutions, loading supply hose, connecting a fire department engine to a water supply, attack line evolutions, hose carries and advances, connecting supply lines to standpipe and sprinkler systems, replacing a defective section of hose, draining and picking up hose and unloading hose.
g.  Describe and/or demonstrate nozzles including nozzle shut-offs, smooth-bore, fog-stream, other types of nozzles and nozzle maintenance and inspection.
h.  Describe and/or demonstrate foam classifications, foam concentrates, foam equipment, foam application techniques, back-up resources and foam apparatus.
17. Fire Fighter Survival
a.  Describe the risk- benefit analysis and hazard indicators.
b.  Describe and/or demonstrate safe operating procedures including team integrity, personnel accountability system, emergency communications procedures and rapid intervention companies/crews.
c.  Describe and/or demonstrate fire fighter survival procedures including maintaining orientation, self-rescue and safe havens.
d.  Describe and/or demonstrate air management and rescuing a downed fire fighter.
e.  Describe rehabilitation.
f.  Describe critical incident stress.
18. Salvage and Overhaul
a.  Describe and/or light as it refers to safety principles and practices, lighting equipment, battery-powered lights, electrical generators, lighting methods and cleaning and maintenance.
b.  Describe salvage safety considerations during salvage operations and salvage tools.
c.  Describe and/or demonstrate the use of salvage techniques to prevent water damage by deactivating sprinklers and removing water.
d.  Describe and/or demonstrate the use of salvage techniques to limit smoke and heat damage with salvage covers, salvage cover maintenance, floor runners and other salvage operations.
e.  Describe and/or demonstrate overhaul including safety considerations during overhaul, coordinating overhaul with fire investigators and where to overhaul.
f.  Describe and/or demonstrate overhaul techniques, overhaul tools and opening walls and ceilings.
19. Fire Fighter Rehabilitation
a.  Describe factors, causes and the need for rehabilitation including personal protective equipment, dehydration, energy consumption, tolerance for stress and the body’s need for rehabilitation.
b.  Describe the types of incidents affecting fire fighter rehabilitation including extended fire incidents and other types of incidents requiring rehabilitation.
c.  Describe how rehabilitation works in regard to medical monitoring, revitalization, medical monitoring and treatment, transportation to the hospital, critical incident stress management and reassignment.