#490 High Rise Masterclass with Brent Brooks Ep 3 High Rise Search, Flow Path & Survivability

In this special High Rise Masterclass miniseries, The Firefighters Podcast brings you live recordings direct from the International Tall Buildings Conference and specialist high rise firefighting masterclass held in London in May 2026. Across this series, internationally respected high rise firefighting instructor Brent Brooks shares decades of operational experience, command insight and research driven learning around modern tall building firefighting. 

In episode three Brent takes us deep into the realities of high rise search, flow path, evacuation decisions and survivability. Using powerful lessons from the 200 Wellesley Street fire in Toronto, Brent explains how one open door, one broken window or one occupant action can completely change conditions for firefighters and residents. This episode explores area of refuge, shelter in place, people with disabilities, stairwells, lift lobbies, corridors, positive pressure, stack effect, hose line movement and the difficult truth that no fire department has the resources to do everything at once. It is a practical, honest and challenging conversation about reading the building, respecting the science and making better decisions under pressure. 

Additional Presentation Material from Brent Brooks HERE

International Tall Buildings Conference HERE

Brent Brooks LinkedIn HERE

Brent Brooks Website HERE

Access all episodes, documents, GIVEAWAYS & debriefs HERE

Podcast Apparel, Hoodies, Flags, Mugs HERE

 Please check out our Partners supporting this episode are

William Wood Watches - Discount code FFPODCAST gives the user 10% off full range on website

PBI high-performance fabrics 

FIRST TACTICAL- tactical gear for elite operators

GORE-TEX Professional Clothing

MSA The Safety Company

JAFCO

IDEX

FIRE & EVACUATION SERVICE LTD