Lieutenant Steve Bernocco, is a veteran officer of the Seattle (WA) Fire Department. He writes and speaks nationally on air management and firefighter health and safety. His book, Air Management for the Fire Service, will be published this year by Fire Engineering

David Bernzweig has been in the fire service for 19 years, the past 12 with the Columbus (OH) Division of Fire, where he is a lieutenant/paramedic. He is the 2nd Vice President of the Columbus Firefighters Union and chairs the Union Health & Safety Committee. he is a member of the NFPA Technical Committee on Respiratory Protection Equipment. He is a member of the FEMA US&R Ohio Task Force One, and is a fire and EMS instructor for the State of Ohio. He has degrees in political science and economics from The Ohio State University.

Bob Carpenter, a 30-year veteran of the fire service, is a 22-year veteran of and a captain in Miami-Dade (FL) Fire Rescue, where he serves as the North Operations training officer. He helped to develop and present the Officer Development Program (ODP) and is an ODP Drill Week lead instructor. He served as OIC of the Recruit Training Bureau.

Steve Chikerotis is a 29-year member of the Chicago (IL) Fire Department, where he is a battalion chief of the 22nd Battalion. He has also served as assistant director of training and chief of fire academy operations. A fire service instructor for more than 20 years, he has taught classes nationally. He is the author of Firefighters from the Heart (Thomson Delmar, 2006) and has had articles published in fire service journals. He has worked on dozens of major motion pictures including Backdraft.

Larry Collins is a 29-year veteran of and captain with the Los Angeles County (CA) Fire Department (LACoFD) and a USAR specialist and paramedic assigned to USAR Task Force 103, which responds to technical rescues and multialarm fires across the county. He is a Search Team manager for the LACoFD’s FEMA/OFDA US&R Task Force for domestic and international response, and he has served as a US&R specialist on the “Red” FEMA US&R Incident Support Team since 1990. The author of dozens of articles and case studies, he wrote the textbook series Technical Rescue Operation (Fire Engineering: Vol.1, 2004; Vol. 2, 2005); the Rescue chapter of The Fire Chiefs Handbook; and the Rescue chapter of Fire Engineering’s Handbook for Firefighter I and II.

David Dalrymple is a career EMS provider for the RWJUH Emergency Medical Services in New Brunswick, NJ and he is a volunteer Rescue Services Captain for Clinton EMS/Rescue in Clinton, NJ. He has been actively involved with emergency services for 26 years. He is the education chair of the Transportation Emergency Rescue Committee - US (TERC). This committee is charged with developing educational materials and performing research and development on transportation rescue. Dalrymple is certified as an international-level extrication assessor and serves on the Expert Technical Advisory Board of the IETRI as their Road Traffic Accident advisor. He has taught and assessed in North America, Europe, UK and South Africa. He is also a member of the IAFC Specialized Technical Rescue Committee. In 2007, he received the Harvey Grant award for excellence in rescue. He currently writes the "Extrication Tactics" column for Fire Engineering and is a contributing author for the Firefighter I & II textbook and is currently working on a 3 DVD educational series on vehicle technology and rescue.

James M. Dalton is the coordinator of research and development for the Chicago (IL) Fire Department.

Chris Daly, an 18-year veteran of the fire service, is a member of the Goshen Fire Department in West Chester, Pennsylvania, and a full-time police officer specializing in the reconstruction of serious vehicle crashes. He developed the “Drive to Survive” training program (www.drivetosurvive.org) and lectures nationally on the prevention of emergency vehicle crashes. He has a master’s degree in safety from Johns Hopkins University and will be presenting the “Drive to Survive” classroom session at FDIC 2008.

Paul T. Dansbach has worked in code enforcement for 30 years and has been the fire marshal of Rutherford, NJ, for 23 years. He is a fire instructor at the Bergen County (NJ) Law & Public Safety Institute and has been a member of the Rutherford Fire Department for 31 years, where he also served as chief. He teaches CEU classes for fire inspectors and fire subcode and building subcode officials for Kean and Rutgers Universities. He was a task force investigator for the Bergen County Arson Squad, Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, for more than 10 years. He is a Fire Engineering editorial advisory board member and an FDIC advisory board member. He is the coauthor of the Study Guide for Fireground Size-Up (Fire Engineering, 2003).

Mary Jane Dittmar is senior associate editor of Fire Engineering and FDIC conference manager. Before joining the magazine in January 1991, she served as editor of a trade magazine in the health/nutrition market and held various positions in the educational and medical advertising fields. She has a bachelor’s degree in English/journalism and a master’s degree in communication arts.

Thomas Dunne is a deputy chief in the Fire Department of New York, where he has had 27 years of experience in Mid-Manhattan and the Bronx. He has been the incident commander at hundreds of fires in residential, commercial, and high-rise buildings. He has written numerous articles for Fire Engineering and is a regular contributor to its Roundtable. He is a Fordham University graduate, has presented at FDIC, and writes and lectures on a variety of fire service topics.

Bruce Evans is the EMS chief at the North Las Vegas (NV) Fire Department. He is an NFPA fire instructor III and coordinates the College of Southern Nevada's Fire Technology programs, teaching various fire and EMS topics. He has more than 25 years of experience in a variety of EMS settings. Evans is an adjunct faculty for the National Fire Academy in the EMS, Incident Management, and Terrorism Training programs in addition to co-chairing the Fire and Emergency Services Education committee on EMS management. He has a master's degree in public administration, a bachelor's degree in education, and an associate's degree in fire management. Evans is on the editorial board of the Journal of Emergency Medical Services and has recently co-authored a textbook entitled Management of EMS. Evans is the chair of the National Association of EMTs Health and Safety Task Force and sits on the NHTSA safety subcommittee as part of the National EMS Advisory Committee. He is also a board member for the Cyanide Treatment Coalition and actively involved with the International Association of Fire Chiefs, National Association of EMS educators.

Captain Mike Gagliano, is a veteran officer of the Seattle (WA) Fire Department. He writes and speaks nationally on air management and firefighter health and safety. His book, Air Management for the Fire Service, will be published this year by Fire Engineering

Kriss Garcia has served in the fire service for 25 years and recently retired as a battalion chief from the Salt Lake City (UT) Fire Department. He is chief of the Tooele City Volunteer Fire Department. He has a bachelor’s degree in public administration, is a licensed engineering contractor and a paramedic, and is an NFA instructor. He serves on the NFPA 1021 committee as a voting member of The Air Movement Control Association. He is the co-author of Positive Pressure Attack for Ventilation and Firefighting and numerous magazine articles on the subject.

Bill Gustin, a 34-year veteran of the fire service, is a captain with Miami-Dade (FL) Fire Rescue and lead instructor in his department’s officer training program. He began his fire service career in the Chicago area and teaches fire training programs in Florida and other states. He is a marine firefighting instructor and has taught fire tactics to ship crews and firefighters in Caribbean countries. He also teaches forcible entry tactics to fire departments and SWAT teams of local and federal law enforcement agencies. Gustin is an editorial advisory board member of Fire Engineering.

Gregory Havel is a member of the Burlington (WI) Fire Department, a retired deputy chief and training officer, and a 30-year veteran of the fire service. He is a Wisconsin-certified fire instructor II and fire officer II, an adjunct instructor in fire service programs at Gateway Technical College, and safety director for Scherrer Construction Co., Inc. Havel has a bachelor’s degree from St. Norbert College and has more than 30 years of experience in facilities management and building construction.

Jeffrey L. Herbert is an engineer/paramedic with the Phoenix (AZ) Fire Department. He is a paramedic preceptor and has taught National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) courses while working for the U.S. Forest Service. He also has a master's degree in emergency management from Arizona State University. 

Samuel Hittle is a firefighter with the Wichita (KS) Fire Department, assigned to the HMRT. He is a Wichita hands-on training instructor and has an associate degree in fire science from Butler County Community College.

Craig Jones is magnetic resonance imaging researcher at the University of Western Ontario (UWO) in London, Ontario, Canada, and is a member of the UWO Hazardous Materials Emergency Response Team. He received his firefighter II, EMT-B, and hazardous materials operations-level training while serving in the Owings Mills (MD) Volunteer Fire Company. He received his Ph.D. in physics from the University of British Columbia in 1997.

Captain Phil Jose, is a veteran officer of the Seattle (WA) Fire Department. He writes and speaks nationally on air management and firefighter health and safety. His book, Air Management for the Fire Service, will be published this year by Fire Engineering

Reinhard Kauffmann is a battalion chief for the Salt Lake City (UT) Fire Department, where he has served for more than 30 years. During his career, he has held positions of paramedic, interim chief, and airport fire chief. He has a bachelor’s degree in microbiology. His interests and positive pressure for firefighting began in 1989. He is the co-author with Battalion chief Kriss Garcia, of Positive Pressure Attack for Ventilation and Firefighting and numerous magazine articles on the subject.

Steve Kerber is a research engineer with Underwriters Laboratories Inc. and has 12 years firefighting experience.

David Ladd has served as the director of the six-state/regional hazmat response teams of Massachusetts for the past 10 years. Prior to his service to the state, he had a 25- year career in emergency medical services, predominantly serving the City of Boston as a paramedic and chief of operations. Ladd currently serves as a member of the Inter-Agency Board, the Stakeholders Panel on Agent Detection Assays for the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Science and Technology, through the Association of Analytical Communities and as the Chair of the Responder Working Group for the revision of the national sampling standard under the National Institutes of Standards and Technology.

Frank C. Montagna is a battalion chief and a 39-year veteran of the Fire Department of New York (FDNY). For the past 22 years, he has served as a chief officer and is currently assigned to curriculum development at the FDNY Bureau of Training, creating training programs for chiefs, company officers, and firefighters. He has a degree in fire science from John Jay College, where he has taught fire science and management courses and is teaching a course based on his book Responding to “Routine” Emergencies (Fire Engineering, 1999). He is a member of the editorial advisory board of Fire Engineering, lectures on various fire-related topics, and is a contributor to Fire Engineering and WNYF.

Shawn Perry is a 17-year veteran of the Sacramento (CA) Fire Department and has worked as assistant fitness director since 1993. He has a master of science degree in exercise physiology from the University of Illinois and a bachelor of science degree in human performance from San Jose State University. He lectures on firefighter health and fitness across the country, including at FDIC.

Captain Casey Phillips, is a veteran officer of the Seattle (WA) Fire Department. He writes and speaks nationally on air management and firefighter health and safety. His book, Air Management for the Fire Service, will be published this year by Fire Engineering 

Forest Reeder began his fire service career in 1979 and is battalion chief/director of training & safety with the Pleasantview (IL) Fire Protection District and director of training for Southwest United Fire Districts in these capacities, he is responsible for the design, implementation, and coordination of in-service training activities as well as a full-service fire training academy program. He has numerous Illinois fire service certifications and a master’s degree in public safety administration from Lewis University. His training drills appear regularly on www.fireengineering.com as the Drill of the Week.

Jeff Seaton works on Engine 5 for the City of San Jose, California, and has been a career firefighter and student of the fire service for more than 15 years in the United States and Canada.  In 2005, he received the San Jose (CA) Fire Department Firefighter of The Year Award. He is a California State Certified Company Fire Officer and  department and recruit academy adjunct instructor. He has written, developed and implemented various training programs and SOPs/SOGs for his department and others.  He is a hands-on-training instructor and featured speaker at various state, local, national, and international training symposiums. In 2008, he traveled to Vietnam with other U.S. Fire Service professionals to review their fireground operations and make recommendations toward improving their fire service.  He co-founded the “Nobody Gets Left Behind” Training Group, has a B.A. in physical education, and is a former western regional director for the International Society of Fire Service Instructors.

Craig H. Shelley, EFO, CFO, CFPS, is a 41-year veteran of the fire service. He has served in volunteer fire/EMS, career municipal, and career industrial fire departments. He served for 26 years with the Fire Department of New York (FDNY), retiring as the chief of marine operations. Shelley is an adjunct associate professor for the University of Maryland University College, teaching its Managerial Issues in Hazardous Materials and Advanced Fire Administration courses, and also serves as an adjunct associate professor for Charter Oak State College, teaching strategic planning. He is a fire protection advisor with a major oil company operating in the Middle East. He has a bachelor of science degree in fire service administration and a master of science degree in executive fire service leadership. He is a frequent contributor to industry trade publications, speaks at national and international conferences, and is a co-author of Industrial Firefighting for Municipal Firefighters (Fire Engineering, 2007).

Jeff Shupe, who has more than 33 years of service as a career firefighter, is a member of the Cleveland (OH) Fire Department and a former volunteer firefighter. He is an Ohio-certified fire instructor and has been a training coordinator for volunteer and career fire departments. He is the lead instructor for the Cleveland Fire Department “Back to Basics” program and an instructor in the Outreach programs for the Ohio Fire Academy. He has an associate’s degree in fire technology from a community college and also attended the University of Cincinnati Fire Protection Engineering program. He is an FDIC H.O.T. team member for Engine Company Operations and an FDIC classroom presenter.

Ronald Spadafora is a deputy assistant chief with the Fire Department of New York, an adjunct professor of fire science in the Department of Public Management at John Jay College and CUNY, and a senior instructor for Fire Technology Incorporated. He has an MPS degree in criminal justice from LIU-C.W. Post Center, a B.S. degree in fire science from John Jay College, and a B.A. degree in health education from Queens College, CUNY. He is an editor and frequent contributor to WNYF.

Alan Stocker is a division chief with the San Bernardino County (CA) Fire Department, assigned to the South Desert Division. He has more than 30 years of fire service experience, more than 20 of them as a chief officer.

Fred Sullivan retired after 36 years with the Boston (MA) Fire Department, the past 20 years as a district chief.  He has been involved with the Technical Rescue Teams for the past five years.  Sullivan has a B.S. degree in fire science.