ATLANTA – Experts from the electric industry and the firefighting community convened at NERC headquarters for a unique training session focused on a common approach to emergency response in both sectors. The discussion highlighted the essential role that continual training and experience play in improving human performance.
“The electric industry, aviation industry and the first responder community are among the leading sectors in which a comprehensive training approach produces organizations that are highly reliable," said James Merlo, NERC vice president and director of Reliability Risk Management. “The key to developing highly reliable and resilient organizations and services is a firm commitment to continuous human performance improvement that is grounded in a culture of improving systems and processes that set workers up for success," Merlo said.
Topics at the NERC training session included how the human brain responds to emergencies, thinking deliberately and responding calmly in emergencies and regularly exercising and updating emergency response plans based on current and future scenarios.
Speakers at the NERC training session included Joseph W. Pfeifer, former chief of Counterterrorism and Emergency Preparedness for the New York City Fire Department, and John Russ, program manager at National Firefighter Near Miss Reporting System.
The NERC training session took place before the start of NERC's eighth annual Human Performance Conference.
