Fire-Dex Blog

Derek Currao is an instructor in fire service training for Mission CIT (Critical Immersive Training) and has been a firefighter in Bridgeport, Connecticut for the past twelve years. 

For the firefighting instructors of Insight Fire Training, the teaching isn’t just a job. As founder and lead instructor Andy Starnes says, the work is a calling. 

VentEnterSearch, a training group out of Florida, has carved out a reputation for delivering high-impact, hands-on instruction centered around truck company operations. But as co-founder Eric Wheaton explains, their training is useful for every firefighter.

When most firefighters think of training, they think of the basics. Throwing ladders, opening doors, prepping hose lines. Those activities are all related to the primary job of firefighting: getting to people in danger and attempting to save property. 

When it comes to firefighter training, realism isn’t just about smoke machines and fire props—it’s about preparing the mind as much as the body. 

Alexandria Brown, or Dria to those who know her, is an Ohio firefighter, founder of the group Female Firefighters of Ohio, and avid (and successful) Firefighter Challenge competitor.  

In the last few decades, turnouts have evolved from rubber coats to modern three-layer composites. Advances in materials and fit mean that gear performs at a higher level than it did previously.

Jimmy Berry, a Florida firefighter of over twenty years and instructor for VentEnterSearch, is passionate about educating and training firefighters for aggressive rescue tactics in the fire service. 

In 2024, Fire-Dex released our groundbreaking AeroFlex turnouts. We set out to make the most breathable turnouts the fire service has ever seen. 

When you’re on scene, the last thing you want to think about is your gear. As a gear manufacturer, that means our job is to make PPE so well that you forget you’re wearing it.