Frequently Asked Questions
How are Raven Rescue courses NFPA compliant?
Q. What is the NFPA?
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is an American organization that develops codes and standards for all areas of fire-rescue. While not mandated by law, many agencies choose to follow the NFPA’s standards for training and operations in order to ensure consistency, rigour, and effectiveness, and also to limit liability.
For more than 12 years, the NFPA 1670 and 1006 Standards have established minimum guidelines for technical search and rescue incidents. The standards cover a wide variety of disciplines, including rope rescue, water rescue, vehicle and machinery rescue, confined space rescue, structural collapse rescue, and trench rescue. The NFPA 1670 Standard establishes general guidelines to assist departments in assessing hazards, identifying levels of operational capabilities, and establishing response guidelines and training documentation. The NFPA 1006 Standard defines the professional qualifications an individual must have in order to be considered a “rescue technician”, including a formal assessment by an independent third party.
However, the NFPA does not certify that training providers meet its standards, therefore it is up to the employer to know the relevant standards and ensure training is compliant. This is very difficult and time consuming, because standards are detailed and complex, so for those who truly value compliant training, two agencies exist that will certify individuals as having met the NFPA 1006 Standard for Professional Rescuer Qualifications - for a price of course. These are the ProBoard Fire Service Professional Qualifications System and IFSAC (International Fire Service Accreditation Congress). See more info on these agencies and our relationship to them below.
Q. What about Canadian standards?
To date, no Canadian agency has taken the lead in developing similar standards and it is unlikely that such a massive project will be undertaken in the near future, given that existing NFPA Standards are rigorous and complete. In the absence of national standards, it is likely that the NFPA will remain the de-facto standard in Canada and the rest of the world.
Q. Why is NFPA compliance important?
By training to a consistent, complete and high standard, first responders can be sure their training provides them with what they need in order to do their jobs effectively, efficiently and most of all, safely. In addition, a consistent standard for training ensures that first responders are able to work together in a streamlined manner on inter-agency callouts and major national or international disasters.
Q. What is the relationship between Raven Rescue and the NFPA?
Raven Rescue is a member of the NFPA and also the Official Agent for Rescue 3 International in Western Canada, and as such, we teach only Rescue 3 water, rope, boat and ice rescue courses that are compliant with NFPA standards.
Q. How are Raven Rescue/Rescue 3 courses NFPA-compliant?
More than 10 years ago, Rescue 3 realized the importance of standardized training and did a major re-organization of its courses in order to bring its curriculum into line with NFPA 1670 and 1006 Standards. Courses are now organized according to Awareness, Operations and Technician levels, the curriculum is based on the content of the 1670 Standard, and knowledge and skills are taught in the manner prescribed by the NFPA. Only a few years later, 9/11 was the catalyst that saw a huge increase in the number of emergency response agencies adopting NFPA Standards. In Canada, it took longer for departments to adopt NFPA Standards, but the growth has been steady for the past 10 years, to the point where it is now the norm rather than the exception. What remains to be done is to ensure emergency responders are paying more than lip service to the standards, and ensuring their training truly is NFPA compliant.
To that end, Raven Rescue offers independent, third-party verification that its courses are NFPA compliant. This expert, third-party endorsement of our curriculum is what sets Rescue 3 apart from other training providers.
First off, on several occasions during the past decade, Rescue 3’s curriculum has been independently audited by highly-placed and credible agencies and found to meet the NFPA 1670 Standard. In particular, one of the leading fire training schools in the US - University of Maryland - has reviewed the Rescue 3 swiftwater curriculum and attests to its compliance with NFPA 1670. In addition, U of M has evaluated Rescue 3’s Professional Qualification Workshop and found it meets the NFPA 1006 Standard. This is strong proof of compliance, but there’s more ....
Second, we are evaluators of record for North Vancouver District Fire Department’s ProBoard swiftwater rescue and technical rope rescue certification program (North Vancouver is one of only four ProBoard accredited agencies in BC). As such, our curriculum, delivery and method of evaluation have been carefully scrutinized by ProBoard and found to meet the NFPA 1006 Standard. This is more incontrovertible proof of compliance, but there’s even more ....
Finally, Raven Rescue is an approved provider of British Columbia’s Technical High Angle Rope Rescue Program (THARP) which assists participating fire departments in meeting WorkSafeBC requirements for the technical rescue function. Thirty-four industry classifications contribute to the funding of this program through their WorkSafeBC assessments. THARRP consists of Awareness, Operations, Technician, Tower and Instructor level training meeting applicable NFPA Standards. Our curriculum and delivery has been carefully reviewed by the THARRP Steering Committee which is made up of representatives from the BC Professional Fire Fighters’ Association; BC Fire Chiefs’ Association; Labour; Industry; WorkSafeBC, and BC Construction Safety Alliance.
But compliant training isn’t worth much if you can’t prove it. To this end, we provide every course participant with a personalized training record showing all the skills and knowledge covered and keyed to NFPA 1670 and 1006 Standards. This training record becomes a valuable document for personnel files and demonstrates due diligence in training and record keeping. Not only that, we register each and every participant in the Rescue 3 International database that goes back 35 years. If a training record is ever lost or destroyed, an electronic copy is available within 24 hours. It’s nice to know if your dog eats it, your mother-in-law washes it, or your boss loses it, that you can get backup of your credentials fast.
Q. How can other course providers say they are NFPA “compliant” too?
Anyone can claim to be compliant, and without rigorous research, it is difficult to disprove this. However, only Rescue 3 courses have been independently audited by industry leaders and found to meet the NFPA 1670 and 1006 Standards.
Q. Is being NFPA “compliant” good enough?
Not really, because you can be “compliant” without being “complete”. Under the NFPA 1670 Standard requirements for swiftwater, a technician must be both a water and rope rescue technician. The criteria is so extensive that it requires in excess of 80 hours of training to achieve—which is why Rescue 3 broke it down into three component parts. In order to train to the complete NFPA 1670 or 1006 standard for technical water rescue incidents, you must take three Rescue 3 courses:
- Swiftwater Rescue Technician – Level One (3 days)
- Swiftwater Rescue Technician – Advanced and, (3 1/2 days)
- Technical Rope Rescue (technician level) (7 days)
Upon completion of all three, you are awarded Rescue 3’s highest certification (excluding Instructor) which is Water and Rope Technician. The only higher-level training offered through Rescue 3 is a Professional Qualification Workshop which certifies that you have been trained to the NFPA 1006 Standard and your skills have been verified by an independent third party evaluator (ie: your evaluator cannot have been your instructor). In addition, there are ProBoard and IFSAC evaluations available.
So if true, third-party verified NFPA compliance is of value to you or your organization, choose the training provider that can prove their compliance ... in more ways than one!
