During emergencies, firefighters may face challenges such as inappropriate victim responses, poor communication, and lack of needed information. Here we describe the multistep development of a questionnaire for firefighters to identify emergency-related human factors that may impair their professional performance and interfere with procedures during threatening events and evacuations. The resulting self-report questionnaire, titled the Behavior Security Culture–First Responder, comprises a battery of scales plus single questions designed for international use. We report the psychometric properties of the battery of scales and their application across 8 countries: Germany, UK, Spain, Sweden, Poland, Czech Republic, Turkey, and Italy. Exploratory factor analysis and multigroup confirmatory factor analysis were conducted with a total sample of 3,011 firefighters (97% male). Exploratory factor analysis revealed 6 unidimensional scales assessing various aspects of victim behavior, communication with others, and information availability and reliability. Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses, with the 8 countries inserted as groups, confirmed configural and metric invariance, but not scalar invariance. Internal consistency estimates of the 6 scales ranged from α = .77 to .80. Divergent validity was established for all scales in all national samples. The collected data and the questionnaire may be used for developing training programs and to aid in directing resources efficiently.

Aim:The purpose of this article is to review the literature on the risks associated with the transport, storage and processing of liquefied natural gas, and to lay a foundation for developing an LNG risk assessment methodology and the related State Fire Service response procedures. The authors focused on analysing the risks associated with the physicochemical properties of LNG. The reviewed publications explored scenarios related to the operation of LNG terminals. Introduction: The construction of the LNG terminal in Świnoujście, the constantly growing global LNG industry, and the increasingly widespread use of LNG-fuelled vehicles increase the associated risks. Therefore, it is extremely important to recognise these risks. All preventive and corrective measures require a thorough knowledge of the issues they designed to address. This article is the first step towards the development of fire department procedures to manage LNG risks. It includes a summary of the main risks faced by emergency services and scenarios that could be useful for developing a methodology for LNG risk assessment. Methodology: The analysis presented in the article is based on a review of selected Polish and foreign literature. We provide a general discussion of the global LNG industry and its history, and of the physicochemical properties of liquefied gas. Furthermore, we identify the risks associated with the physicochemical properties of LNG, and discuss scenarios involving LNG risks in the supply chain, as provided in the reviewed literature. Conclusions: Based on a synthetic review of the literature, it can be concluded that the risks associated with the use of LNG have been thoroughly described in international literature. Polish publications on the subject are scarce. Awareness of LNG-related risks is crucial for the work of State Fire Service officers, as it is the basis for any preventive measures. Risk identification is the first step in the assessment. Existing literature offers few descriptions of "micro-scale" risks, involving, for instance, the use of LNG-powered vehicles. Macro-scale risks, on the other hand -those involving the transport and storage of large quantities of LNG -have been described in great detail.

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Praca pod redakcją bryg. dr. inż. Dariusza Wróblewskiego Publikacja wydana w ramach projektu "Zintegrowany system budowy planów zarządzania kryzysowego w oparciu o nowoczesne technologie informatyczne" fi nansowanego przez NCBR na podstawie umowy nr DOBR