The three-day course was hosted by the 51st Civil Engineer Squadron and brought together 42 participants from the U.S.Air Force and Republic of Korea Air Force firefighters, local Korean fire departments, and emergency responders from Kunsan Air Base, Camp Humphreys, and the cities of Songtan and Daegu.
To enhance interoperability and operational readiness between on-and-off base emergency services, the course was conducted in both English and Korean, with a live translator to help ensure key concepts were clearly communicated and understood by all attendees.
The training covered a wide range of critical fire criteria, including current regulations and standards, fire behavior, incident strategy and tactics, problem identification, and tabletop exercises.
“Each type of building has a safe operating time when exposed to heat or fire, so this training helps firefighters understand how long they can safely operate inside, even if that time is zero when they arrive,” said Brett Stohr, InSource Fire Training president. “Osan Air Base is committed to constantly striving to improve their ability to protect lives and serve the people at their installations through smarter, faster, and safer emergency response.”
The course also provided the opportunity to unify approaches to emergency response, laying the groundwork for faster, more coordinated operations during crises that involve both U.S. and Korean jurisdictions.
“This course gives our fire officers and our Korean counterparts the tools they need to succeed on a scene they may not feel prepared for but will be expected to respond to,” said Master Sgt. Christian Arvelo, 51st CES deputy fire chief. “And because we’re training alongside different departments on-base and off-base with ROKAF, we’re reinforcing that we all serve the same community and the same mission.”
This training marks a significant step toward building stronger partnerships and enhancing shared readiness across emergency service on the peninsula.
