Firefighter Podcast
The Firefighters Podcast is an award winning global podcast developing, inspiring, connecting, motivating & celebrating the world of our emergency services operators through a series of wide-ranging conversations with those within our emergency services family.
Hosted by serving operational UK firefighter & Instructor Pete Wakefield who speaks with individuals from all walks of life who share a connection with, can add value to, or can develop those within the fire sector.
Our driving purpose is to create a legacy resource for the current and future generations of firefighters & first responders
Episodes
485 episodes
#498 Ordinary People, Extraordinary Rescues: When Everyday People Choose to Act
In this one-off episode I step away from our usual focus on trained emergency responders to explore what happens when ordinary people find themselves inside somebody else’s worst moment and choose to act. Through documented stories ...
#497 In the Bays with Cobb County Fire Georgia USA
Recorded in the appliance bays during our March 2026 visit to Atlanta, this episode offers a quick insight into Cobb County Fire and Emergency Services and one small part of the wider American fire service.We discuss their specialist com...
#496 Humble, Hungry & Smart: How to become the teammate your crew can rely on
In this short solo episode, Im doing something a little different as one of the most common emails i get is about personal development tools - so here is one i think might be useful.In this episode im going to revisit & explore
#495 Creating Thinking Firefighters with Chief Jason Caughey
In this episode, im joined by Chief Jason Caughey, a fire service leader with more than 30 years of experience and the Fire Chief of Laramie County Fire Authority in Wyom...
#494 DEBRIEF: 11 Minutes to Fireball - Boyd Street, Downtown LA, May 16th 2020
In this incident debrief, we examine the Boyd Street fire in Downtown Los Angeles, where what first appeared to be a routine commercial building fire rapidly escalated into a catastrophic fireball that injured 12 Los Angeles firefighters. We br...
#493 On-Call & Volunteer Retention Systems: The Perennial Problem - Solving It for the 21st Century
In this episode, we explore one of the fire service’s most persistent challenges: how we recruit, retain and properly support on-call and volunteer firefighters in a world that has changed faster than the systems designed to sustain them....
#492 DEBRIEF: Glasgow School of Art Fire, Failure and the Hidden Highway
In this incident debrief, we examine the two devastating fires at the Glasgow School of Art’s Mackintosh Building in 2014 and 2018, unpacking how heritage construction, hidden ventilation ducts, timber voids, compromised fire protection d...
#491 Modern Fire officer with Jared Vermeulen
“Speak softly and carry a big stick” is more than Jared Vermeulen’s favourite quote it reflects the way he thinks about leadership, responsibility, and the modern fire officer. Born and raised in the blue-collar fishing town of Jupiter, Florida...
#490 High Rise Masterclass with Brent Brooks Ep 3 High Rise Search, Flow Path & Survivability
In this special High Rise Masterclass miniseries, The Firefighters Podcast brings you live recordings direct from the International Tall Buildings Conference and specialist high rise ...
#489 More Than Coffee: Rescue 1 & the Mission of Fire Department Coffee with Randy James
Today’s episode is with Randy James from Fire Department Coffee. Randy is a career firefighter and paramedic from Rockford, Illinois, serving since April 2000. His journey took him to Ladder 5, working alongside Fire Department Coffee founder L...
#488 Firefighters with Parkinson’s: The Diagnosis No One Sees Coming
Today is about what happens when the job we love meets a diagnosis that can change everything.I am joined by Dawn Harding, a retired Chief Fire Officer, alongside Steve Norman, former Deputy Assistant Commissioner with London Fire Brigad...
#487 Mr Honest Work aka Jaguar Wattley
Jag, better known to many online as Mr Honest has absolutely exploded across Instagram and TikTok over the last year and has become one of the most recognisable firefighter voices on social media, not just here in the UK, but across the wider f...
#486 Why Persistence Matters: Firefighter, Gladiator & Competitive Optimist | Millie Margetts
Millie Margetts is a firefighter with Humberside Fire and Rescue Service, a coach, athlete, Gladiators semi finalist, and someone who embodies the power of persistence. In this episode, we explore her journey into the fire service after years o...
#485 Leather, Legacy & the shield with Justin Fitzwater of Fitzwater Leather
CLICK HERE JOIN ME AT BLUE LIGHT SHOW | LONDON | JULY 2026My guest today is Justin Fitzwater, firefighter with the Kansas City Fire De...
#484 You Can't Put It Out - Thermal Runaway, EV Fires & the Health Crisis Hiding in Plain Sight with Martin Brown
CLICK HERE JOIN ME AT BLUE LIGHT SHOW | LONDON | JULY 2026In this episode I sit down with
#483 Debrief - Doorway to Hell | 2 Forest Laneway, North York, Toronto, Canada | January 6th 1995
CLICK HERE JOIN ME AT BLUE LIGHT SHOW | LONDON | JULY 2026On the 6th of January 1995, at five in the morning, a man discovered his sof...
#482 AFOA 2026 Conference Live - Developing the All-Hazard Leader with Peter Critchell and Craig Rayner
In this episode of our AFOA 2026 Conference Live mini-series, you are going to hear a presentation from Peter Critchell and Craig Rayner exploring the development of the all-hazard leader within aviation fire and rescue. Drawing on experience f...
#481 Rescue, Transform, Donate: Sustainable Luxury with Kresse Wesling of Elvis & Kresse
In this episode, I speak with Kresse Wesling CBE, co-founder of Elvis & Kresse, about how decommissioned fire hose once dest...
#480 High Rise Masterclass with Brent Brooks Episode 2
In this special High Rise Masterclass miniseries, The Firefighters Podcast brings you live recordings direct from the International Tall Buildings Conference and specialist high rise ...
#479 The Evolution of Structural Firefighting PPE: Reigniting a New Era with Bill Lawson and Helmut Zepf from PBI
I sit down with Helmut Zepf, Managing Director of the PPE Division at PBI, and Bill Lawson, President ...
#478 Firefighter Jack Goodwin on Elite Performance, Mental Health & Finding Meaning Beyond Success
In this episode of The Firefighters Podcast, I sit down with Jack Goodwin for a powerful conversation exploring resilience, trauma, identity, and the psychology of high performance. ...
#477 High Rise Masterclass with Brent Brooks Mini-series Episode 1
In this special High Rise Masterclass miniseries, The Firefighters Podcast brings you live recordings direct from the International Tall Buildings Conference and specialist high rise ...
#476 AFOA 2026 Conference Live RFFS Industry Update with Neil Gray
In Episode 3 of our AFOA 2026 Conference Live mini-series, Principal Aerodrome Inspector Neil Gray from the UK Civil Aviation Authority provides a comprehensive industry update covering key developments affecting aviation fire and rescue servic...
#475 Electric Vehicle Fires Explained with Mike Maybin from IRRTC
In this episode I sit down with Mike Maybin from
#474 AFOA 2026 Conference Live: Resilience After Trauma with Matt Bourner
Welcome to Episode 2 of our special mini-series recorded at the Airport Fire Officers Association (AFOA) Conference 2026, where we are sharing some of the most powerful presentations and conversations from across the aviation fire and res...
