Fire Services' Abilities to Fund Operations, Train Personnel, Respond to, and Mitigate a Terrorist Attack: A Qualitative Multiple-Case Study

The United States fire service has been at the apex of providing protective services to U.S. citizens since its inception in the mid-1700s. On September 11, 2001, the role of the fire service dramatically changed as the United States was attacked by terrorists and New York fire companies responded. On December 17, 2003, President Bush signed the Homeland Security Presidential Directive, HSPD-8 National Preparedness, and the fire service was thrust into the war on terrorism and placed on the front line of defense in the United States. The problem addressed in this study was that over time, the fire service distanced itself from the events of September 11, 2001, and as a result, the priority for the fire service to be operationally ready for a terrorist attack needs to be re-examined. The purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to document and examine the fire services' abilities to fund equipment, train personnel, respond to and contain a domestic terrorist attack. The purposive sample was eight key fire department personnel from three fire departments a metropolitan, a city, and a county fire department in a southeastern state. An online qualitative questionnaire was used to gather data. Study findings include that (1) fifteen years after 9/11, terrorism response training is not provided by federal or state governments to the study's fire services study sites, (2) federal and state terrorism response monies to fire services for training and equipment have been cut, (3) and specialized terrorism response equipment received post 9/11 was never used, needs repaired or is now obsolete. Recommendations for further research call for this study to be replicated to gather data from fire services in high risk terrorism areas across the U.S.