The NFPA Podcast

Apr 22 2024 126
The NFPA Podcast artwork

The NFPA Podcast is the place for safety professionals to stay up to speed on the fast-paced world of electrical, fire, and life safety. Hear in-depth conversations with people out in the field about how they are confronting new challenges and staying on top of emerging technologies to keep the world safe. Listen the second and fourth Tuesday of every month. Email [email protected] to send feedback or recommend a topic for future episodes.

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Hoarding Risk-Reduction Strategies

Apr 22 2024 49 mins  
Residential hoarding poses numerous dangers and fire risks for residents and firefighters, yet communities have struggled to find meaningful solutions. Today on the podcast, two of North America’s most prominent hoarding researchers join us to talk about the causes and trendlines of hoarding (2:08), as well as the latest risk reduction strategies that communities are implementing

Moral Injury and Suicide

Mar 25 2024 41 mins  
In most years, more firefighters die by suicide than from accidents or injuries that happen in the line of duty, according to the Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance. It’s well understood that PTSD is a huge contributor to the problem, but recently a new concept called moral injury has also become recognized as a significant factor. Today on the podcast, we discuss moral injur

What to Know About CO

Mar 11 2024 26 mins  
Each year, accidental carbon monoxide poisonings cause at least 430 deaths in the U.S., and send more than 100,000 people to emergency rooms, according to the CDC. Studies have found that the number of accidental CO deaths has increased over the last decade. Today on the podcast, we speak to Richard Roberts, a member of several NFPA committees on carbon monoxide, and an active part

Doing It Right: Energy Storage and Solar Installs

Feb 26 2024 38 mins  
As the number of energy storage and photovoltaic systems being installed across the world continues to rise dramatically, so does the need for trained professionals to ensure that these systems are reliable and safe for decades to come. Today on the podcast, we discuss the various codes and standards needed for the proper installation and maintenance of ESS and PV; and then our exp

Where is AI Headed?

Feb 12 2024 62 mins  
We wrap up our two-parter about how AI technologies might impact fire and life safety by talking with Xinyan Huang, a fire protection engineer, professor, and AI researcher at the Research Centre for Fire Safety Engineering at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He tells us about a few of the AI tools he and his colleagues are developing and how they may one day help with everyth

Artificial Intelligence and the Fire Service

Jan 22 2024 41 mins  
Today’s podcast is the first in a two-part series looking at how artificial intelligence technologies could impact fire and life safety. In this episode, we focus on AI’s potential impact on the fire service. How might fire departments use AI? What are the dangers? What guardrails need to be in place to ensure that the technology is reliable and safe? We pose those questions an

Sustainability vs. Fire Protection

Jan 08 2024 40 mins  
Lithium-ion batteries and photovoltaic panels are technologies that may improve environmental sustainability, but also present challenges to fire protection engineers. Conversely, chemical flame retardants may lead to better fire outcomes, but also have potentially serious impacts on human health and the environment. Today on the podcast, we talk about some of the inherent friction

Short-Term Rentals: Risky Business

Dec 25 2023 39 mins  
From elevators that can decapitate you to grills that can explode in your face, short-term rental properties aren’t short on things that can hurt you—or worse. In fact, short-term rental safety expert Justin Ford calls these properties the most dangerous sector of the travel and hospitality industry. In this episode, we sit down with Ford to discuss a brief history of the short

Re-Thinking Wildfire

Dec 11 2023 50 mins  
As destruction from wildfire in the U.S. continues to set records, it’s become abundantly clear that the country’s current strategies are not working. But what should we be doing differently? Over the past year, a wildfire commission, comprised of 50 experts from a range of fields, met to try and answer that incredibly complicated question. In September, the commission sent Con

Trauma and Risk

Nov 27 2023 39 mins  
It’s well understood that childhood trauma can have dramatic effects on a person’s adult life, and in recent years, risk prevention experts have started to recognize it as a sizeable contributor to both individual and community risk. Today on the podcast, we talk to a director at the University of Michigan Trauma Burn Center about the role that childhood trauma plays in increas