Author: Courtney Livingston
-
From Shoreline to Scene: The New Reality of Maritime Search and Rescue
Maritime search and rescue (SAR) can seem as if it lives on the fringes of public safety…something that happens “out there,” handled by somebody else, on someone else’s water. In reality, maritime SAR has quietly become one of the most complex, interdependent missions facing local first responder agencies today…and one of the most unforgiving when…
Written by
·
-
At the Water’s Edge: Preparing the Fire Service for the Modern Maritime Mission
For much of the fire service’s history, water represented a boundary – a feature of the landscape that shaped jurisdictional lines but rarely defined operational identity. Fires happened on land. Emergencies happened on roads and in buildings. The maritime domain, when it entered the conversation at all, was often viewed as the responsibility of federal…
Written by
·
-
Training at a Crossroads: Why Having a Standard Matters
This weekend, while reading about another court proceeding connected to the Uvalde tragedy, my thoughts drifted back to the Department of Justice’s Critical Incident Review, released in January 2024. In 2024, almost any time I spoke at a conference or event, I talked about this review. At more than 600 pages, the report is exhaustive,…
Written by
·
-
Unmanned Maritime Systems: When the Operating Environment Outpaces the Playbook
There is a familiar pattern in maritime operations, one where technology advances, the operational reality shifts, and doctrine follows…eventually. Unmanned maritime systems now sit squarely in the gap between what our manuals describe and what the operational environment increasingly presents. For OGAs and training organizations, much of our formal guidance still reflects yesterday’s assumptions, while…
Written by
·