Advertise on podcast: The Weekly Scrap, Firefighter Podcast

This week we’re joined by Stephanie White, Editor-in-Chief of Firefighter Nation, one of the sharpest voices in the industry. Fresh off the rig after 20+ years as a firefighter/paramedic with Fairfax County, Stephanie is bringing her no-nonsense perspective to the table. We dive into the topics that matter most right now. Starting with the problem of conflicts in the fire house and then pivoting to victim mentality in the fire service. And with the biggest week in the industry happening right now, you already know we’re talking the BIG SHOW - FDIC. As always… I count on the audience to bring the heat and the great questions because the best part of The Scrap is we never know where the conversation will go!!!! If you care about the health, culture, and long-term survival of this job, you do NOT want to miss this one. Let’s get after it! Stephanie White is on The Scrap!

Joined on this episode by the one and only Curt Isakson — the absolute force of nature I call “Hurricane Ike” is BACK for Episode 350 of The Scrap! Chief Ike — 30+ year fire service legend, recently retired Battalion Chief from Escambia County Fire Rescue, creator of County Fire Tactics, and the man who’s lit up The Scrap on episodes 70, 100 (“People Before Water”), 150, 200, 250 (“Faith, Family, Fire, Friends & the Future”), and 313 — returns with the same unrelenting passion and fire that defines every single appearance. Curt never phones it in. He shows up raw, real, and ready to drop heavy tactical gold, hard-earned leadership lessons from the fireground, and straight-talk truth about the real challenges of this job — raising the next generation of probies, navigating the good days, bad days, and truly GREAT days. If you’ve listened to any of Chief Ike’s previous episodes, you already know: the energy is electric, the wisdom runs deep, and the conversation goes exactly where it needs to go. This one is no different. This is Episode 350 of The Scrap — unfiltered, no holds barred, and packed with value for every firefighter who wants to get better. Link it to a brother or sister who needs to hear this, and share it everywhere.  Chief Ike just brought the heat.

Joined on this episode by the one and only Brian Brush (CRUSH) and you better be ready, because we’re diving deep into rescue data. He’s coming on to release and discuss the initial findings from the 2026 rescue count. We compare it to the 2021 project and what trends we can quantify, and what trends we are seeing over the last five years. With over 500 structure fire incidents across the U.S. in the first 90 days of 2026 where a civilian rescue was made. That’s 5.6 structure fire incidents per day involving a rescue, roughly one every 4 hours and 16 minutes. Nearly 1,000 civilians rescued from those incidents. An average of 1.9 victims per fire where a rescue occurs. Roughly 11 Americans rescued by firefighters every single day. The data is already telling a powerful story! We also talk Fire Engineering and FDIC with the big show right around the corner. And of course, talking to Crush always needs to include what is going on at his department and the culture of live fire and training that they have built. The audience as always brought the great questions... which is what makes the Scrap the absolute best!!! Share this everywhere!!!

On this episode I am joined by the one and only Kris Blume, and it was a heavy dose of leadership discussion! We talked about what he means when he says “Carry the Fire” and “Serve the Work,” along with “The Quiet Damage of Destructive Leadership” and how “Burnout Isn’t Just the Job, It’s Leadership.” We also dove into “Data vs. Culture: What Actually Changes Behavior?” And "The Cost of Silence" As usual, we only got to a fraction of the topics. The questions from the audience came fast and often. 

Joined on this episode by the one and only Dave Dubowski and it was one for the ages. We plan to talk about his  journey through the fire service and how trajectory is something he has been thinking about.  We dive into what he coined “5 career calls over the past 5 years.”  His photography and buffing over the past 42 years…of course talking to Dubowski, it would be a party foul to not discuss the FOOLS and the upcoming FOOLS convention in St. Louis this year.  And as always with the Weekly Scrap, the audience jumped in with their questions and we went wherever the questions took us. Which is what makes the Scrap the Scrap!!! Enjoy the show!

Joined on this episode by one of my favorite Stone brothers…Chief Shannon Stone. I was fired up for this conversation and the topics we planned to dig into. I’ve taken a lot of notes over the years sitting in on this man’s lectures.  Leadership,  developing the ideal promotional process to put the right people in the right seats and building cultures to support our mission. What it looks like to promote up through the ranks, and how perspective changes when you start looking back over your career.  And as always, the audience jump in with their questions and took over the conversation and it was awesome!  Enjoy the show!

Joined on this episode by the one and only Jake Ryks, and here is a taste of the talking points we we’re planning to cover: the importance of training, inspiring the next generation to care, taking pride in the job, recruitment and retention, when it’s time to promote, what it means to truly be a “master firefighter,” department morale, leading by example, and what it means to be “the senior man.” We’ll also talk about firehouse culture (hazing vs. just having fun), the importance of caring about the little things, not rushing your career goals, Jake’s mental health journey and his experience at the IAFF Center of Excellence, the fire story behind the awards he received in 2024, why the fire service matters so much to him, who should—and shouldn’t—be a firefighter, and how to walk the line between safe and “too safe,” and risky vs. “too risky.” Enjoy!!!

This week, the Scrap was a little different. We filmed LIVE on location in Baton Rouge at the L.I.F.T. Fire Conference with special guests Bassel Ibrahim and Todd Edwards. (With Surprise guest Clyde Gordon) Questions came from the YouTube audience and the live audience at L.I.F.T. An amazing evening with several surprises.  It was an amazing evening and an unforgettable Live Scrap!

There is not a more sacred number in the United States Fire service than 343 and I did not want to treat this as just another episode. With this year marking the 25th anniversary of 9/11, it was important to approach Episode #343 with respect and honor.  So with that said - this will be MEGA SCRAP FDNY!  I will be joined by three of FDNY's best: Tom Richardson, Joe Jardin and Frank Leeb. Together they bring more than 115 years of combined experience to explore, dissect, dig-into and ask questions about!  We will absolutely honor those who were lost. But that’s not the sole focus. We’ll also talk about the impact, the changes, and the challenges they faced and overcame throughout their careers.  It was an incredible Scrap.  Enjoy.

Joined this week by Mr. Fully Involved himself, the one and only Mark vonAppen.  It promises to be an awesome conversation as one of my most influential mentors comes back on the Scrap!  We discuss how decisions made at the mid-level shape culture, trust, and long-term performance within organizations. How he likes to  emphasizes accountability without ego, discipline without arrogance, and the idea that credibility is built through consistent action, not position. We planned to address the challenges firefighters face: ethical gray areas, top-down pressure, burnout, and the tension between policy and people. Of course as always the best thought out topics of me and the guest got beutifully hijacked by the wonderful questions from the audience.  Enjoy the episode!!!

Joined this week by the one and only Chris Watson.  It was an interesting conversation for sure! We dove deep into transferring knowledge, not just skills. The big question: Are we really doing enough for the next generation of firefighters? Mentoring and how much he learned from his mentors and how that impacted him to pass it on. Chris is also passionate about sharing knowledge beyond the firehouse, especially with the public - and  why fostering relationships with all stakeholders matters more than ever. He brings a unique perspective on how small, seemingly minor interactions can compound over time into massive wins for any organization. And of course, as always, the audience questions drove the Scrap! Pull up. Let’s scrap.

Joined this week by the one and only Phil Jose. The first time Phil came on the show, I was out of the country and had Rob Fisher step in as guest host.  I enjoyed listening to that Scrap so much and knew I had to bring Phil back for another round. We talk a lot about tactical decision games, and the lessons he has learned after building and running them for years. The pitfalls to avoid and the best ways to go about setting up your own. Of course, as always the direction of the discussion was driven by the amazing questions from the audience. Let’s scrap. You already know this one’s gonna hit.

Joining us this week is the editor-in-chief himself, Chief David Rhodes!  The number 339 holds deep significance for Rhodes, and we unpack what it means to him. We dive into the nuts-and-bolts… and where this philosophy comes from as well as how he uses it to guide his personal decision making.  No discussion with Chief Rhodes would be complete without checking in on the big show and what all he has planned for FDIC this year, and of course all of this was wonderfully interrupted by the live audience and their awesome questions. 

Joined this week by Groovy himself, Chad Gruver and if you know Chad you know this was an interesting and wild conversation. We discuss Engine work, and how he builds and maintains the culture he desires. We  discuss charities and how a bunch of bad ass seals and bad ass firefighters have done a lot of badass things to make a difference in a lot of lives. Of course, Chad has had his own “Oh shit!  Life slapping you in the face!” type of event… and he dives into the details of his face-to-face battle with cancer at age 52. Of course all of the best laid plans of me and the guest are always beautifully derailed by the awesome questions from the audience and this was no exception!!

Joined on this episode of the Weekly Scrap by none other than Zach King! This scrap has been a long time in the making and it finally happened.  We had a lot of conversations centered around the word importance!  The importance of having a plan. The importance of visualization of those plans. The importance of understanding that we do not always have tomorrow! The importance of the human element as it pertains to our future success. And of course, as always…me and the guests' conversations were beautifully derailed and thrown aside by the  questions from the audience!  Enjoy the show!