IL OSHA Provides Resource for Fire Departments
Sample standard operating guidelines designed for safe, assertive, and effective operations.
- By Stasia DeMarco
- Apr 16, 2025
The Illinois Department of Labor’s (IDOL) Division of Occupational Safety and Health (IL OSHA), in collaboration with the Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal (OSFM), Illinois Fire Service Institute (IFSI), Illinois Fire Chiefs Association (IFCA) and Mutual Aid Box Alarm System-Illinois (MABAS-Illinois) have developed a sample incident command, accountability, and mayday standard operating guideline (SOG) for structure fires.
While IL OSHA requires fire departments that perform interior firefighting to have an incident command, accountability, and mayday policy, IL OSHA does not require use of this specific SOG.
The sample SOG was developed using the following goals:
- To provide a basic SOG (it is three pages) that fire departments without an incident command, accountability, and mayday SOG can easily adopt and implement.
- To provide an SOG that could be adopted verbatim, adopted with modifications, or used as a tool to compare a department’s current SOG to the sample SOG.
- To strike the balance between firefighter safety and operational effectiveness.
- To combat the “NIOSH 5” fatal factors of firefighter deaths and injuries on the fireground.
“I am thankful for the time and effort the working group took to put together this sample SOG,” said IL OSHA Chief Erik Kambarian. “During IL OSHA inspections, we continue identify fire departments that lack these safety-critical guidelines. These sample guidelines fill that gap.”
“The collaboration between these groups is a crucial step in ensuring that firefighters across Illinois are united in their efforts and equipped with the tools they need to respond safely and effectively,” said State Fire Marshal James Rivera. “By strengthening this partnership, we are not only enhancing efficiency in fire response but also prioritizing the safety of our firefighters during emergency situations.”
“This statewide collaboration is a great example of affiliate agencies aligning to support firefighters and departments across Illinois,” said IFSI Director James Keiken. “This partnership will deliver best practices that prioritize operational effectiveness and firefighter safety.”
“By working with IL OSHA, we've created a simple, adaptable policy that keeps firefighters safe and helps manage fireground activities, ensuring the best outcomes for every fire and protecting our communities,” said IFCA President Chad Hoefle.
The sample SOG is available at osha.illinois.gov/fire.
About the Author
Stasia DeMarco is the Content Editor for OH&S.