Form
Form - After-Action Review (Tier 1)
Document FSSMS-FRM-46Stage 1Revision 2Version 0.3.3
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The crew’s own review, led by the company officer or incident commander, within 72 hours of every working fire, significant call, multi-unit or multi-agency response, exercise or live-fire evolution, good catch, or any event where someone asks for one. It takes 15 to 20 minutes. It follows the hot debrief held before the crew leaves the scene or within the shift. The four questions are the after-action review method in the form the owner’s learning program uses (The Human Factor, 2026a), set out in full in Manual 02 - The Three Tiers and Event Triage. It is mandatory and short because a public inquiry found after-action reports absent across agencies after a Canadian collapse response and recommended they be required (Firefighting in Canada, 2014a), and because a review that takes an hour does not happen.
| Question | What the crew said | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | What was supposed to happen? (the plan, the assignment, the procedure, what we expected on arrival) | |
| 2 | What actually happened? (in order; what we saw; what changed; what surprised us) | |
| 3 | Why was there a difference, and what went well that we should keep? (conditions, not people: staffing, time, equipment, information, weather, radio, command; and the thing we did that made it go right) | |
| 4 | What will we do differently, by whom, by when? (role, not name; date) |
| Field | Entry |
|---|---|
| Anything for the Corrective Action Register? (what; proposed owner by role; proposed date) | |
| Does anything here need a higher tier? (yes / no; why) → tell the HSO today | |
| Anything to share with other crews now? (one line for the station board or the near-miss digest) | |
| Who was present (roles) | |
| Event reference; date of event; date of AAR; officer (role) | |
| Hot debrief held? (yes / no; where; when) |
| Field | Type | Required | Who completes |
|---|---|---|---|
| What was supposed to happen | Free text | Yes | Officer, from the crew |
| What actually happened | Free text | Yes | Officer, from the crew |
| Why the difference; what went well | Free text | Yes | Officer, from the crew |
| What we will do differently; role; date | Free text; role; date | Yes | Officer, from the crew |
| Register items | Free text; role; date | No | Officer |
| Higher tier needed | Yes/no; free text | Yes | Officer |
| Share now | Free text | No | Officer |
| Present (roles) | Roles | Yes | Officer |
| Event reference; dates; officer | Lookup; dates; role | Yes | Officer |
| Hot debrief held | Yes/no; free text | Yes | Officer |
Filed with the incident record in {{Records system}} within 72 hours of the event. Counted for the AAR-completion indicator. Register items entered by the HSO within five working days. Items marked for a higher tier go to the Triage Group the same day.
Firefighting in Canada. (2014a). Elliot Lake: Commissioner lambastes emergency response. https://www.firefightingincanada.com/elliot-lake-commissioner-lambastes-emergency-response-19581/
The Human Factor. (2026a). After the Call, Manual 02: The three tiers and event triage [Unpublished manuscript].