Tunneler, sikkerhets- og beredskapsopplæring i brann- og redningstjenesten

Tunnels are a key element of the Norwegian road transport infrastructure. The road tunnel system consists of more than 1200 tunnels with a large variety of safety designs and standards. Although incident rates are lower in road tunnels than on open roads, the potential consequences of incidents in tunnels are greater by far. Fire and rescue personnel usually experience high uncertainty, time pressure and high-stake decisions during incidents and fires in tunnels. Making sense of the situation in a tunnel fire is challenging and requires personnel equipped with advanced competence. A focus in this project has been to facilitate the process of learning and develop fire and rescue personnel’s competence in tunnel fire safety. Four research areas were emphasized. The research areas were: 1) understanding the current tunnel fire safety educational framework, 2) investigating fire and rescue personnel’s competence, 3) investigating the process of learning, and 4) designing learning activities increase competence in tunnel fire safety. The research areas were explored through participant observation, a national questionnaire, a comparative study and a pilot course. A major finding was that the current approach to tunnel fire safety learning has emerged without necessarily being exposed to assessments that stipulate the foundational principles for learning within the fire and rescue services. The work conducted illustrated that learning materializes following two different processes: 1) an internal mental process of acquisition, where new knowledge is accumulated, combined and gradually refined through critical thinking, and 2) an external process of interaction and participation in work-related activities. Another important finding was that systematic evaluations of learning activities and tools to assess whether and how learning has taken place are scarce. The project has developed an evaluation tool for identifying and following-up learning effects from cooperation exercises and real-life events, focusing on tunnel fire safety. The evaluation tool suggests that learning outcomes may be expressed as changes in structure, cognition, working methods, confirmation of knowledge and practices and/or comprehension of practices and working methods. The project also assessed fire and rescue personnel’s competence in tunnel fire safety. An important finding was that the personnel’s competence varies significantly and that there are discrepancies between the taught practices and the strategies and practices enacted by the personnel when responding to fire events in tunnels. Further, findings from this project showed that the outcome of the learning process is influenced by the content of what is being learned, the context where learning takes place, fire and rescue personnel’s commitment to learning activities, involvement in decision-making and response and reflection. In addition, reflection was revealed to be the driving force behind the learning process.

Analysert dagens rammeverk for opplæring Kartlagt eksisterende kunnskap og kompetansenivå Innsikt i forhold som brann- og redningspersonell betrakter som essensielle i en læringssituasjon Utviklet treningsprogrammer og opplæringsaktiviteter Kompetanseløft i tunnelsikkerhet

Ph.d. prosjektet tar utgangspunkt i dagens kompetansenivå når det gjelder tunnelbrannberedskap i brann- og redningstjenesten i Norge og blant internasjonale tjenester det er rimelig å sammenligne seg med. Dagens rammeverk for opplæring og de dominerende læringsprosessene i beredskapsarbeidet vil bli utfordret. prosjektet vil skissere behovene for kunnskapsutvikling og kompetanseheving innenfor forebygging og beredskap på de ulike nivåene i brann- og redningstjenesten i Norge. Rogaland brann og redning er svært bekymret for dagens situasjon og vektlegger opplæringsarbeidet vedrørende tunnelbranner. De drifter i dag Samfunnssikkerhetssenteret i Rogaland (SASIRO), som også er vertskap for Norwegian Tunnel Safety Cluster (NTSC). De mange aktørene og aktivitetene i tunnelssikkerhetsarbeidet vil danne grunnlag for utvikling av opplæringsmodeller for både forebyggende- og beredskapspersonell.