Examining what factors affect firefighter decisions to declare a major incident

Bibliographic Data

ID22026646
AuthorsSara Waring (0000-0003-1625-5705, University of Liverpool, corresponding author), Beth Hillon (University of Liverpool)
Year2025
Volume116
Pages105098
Publication date2025-01-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2212-4209
PublisherElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.ijdrr.2024.105098
OpenAlexW4405398766
LanguageEN
References cited37

‘Disasters’ or ‘major incidents’ (MIs) are large emergencies that result in mass casualties and major disruptions. Evidence repeatedly highlights delays in decisions to formally declare MIs, impacting incident command, resourcing, and the scale of damage. To date, limited research focus has been directed toward understanding the causes of these issues. Accordingly, the following study draws on interviews conducted with 12 firefighters from the UK to examine what factors affect decisions to declare a MI and why. Thematic Analysis highlighted 5 key themes: 1) Characteristics of Major Incidents ; 2) Knowledge ; 3) Experience ; 4) Environmental Pressure ; and 5) Accountability and Reputation . Findings indicate that ability to decide when to declare a MI is facilitated by knowledge of features characterising these incidents, support mechanisms implemented, local hazards, and incident response experience. Decisions are hindered by anxiety about increased scrutiny MIs can attract. Findings pose important implications for disaster response theory, training, and guidance

Business · Environmental health · Forensic engineering · Occupational safety and health · Poison control · Disaster Management and Resilience · Engineering · Evacuation and Crowd Dynamics · Human Factors and Ergonomics · Medicine · Psychology · Risk and Safety Analysis

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access