Hazard Class

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HAZARD CLASS is the podcast where the curiosity of genuine questions regarding hazmat, firefighting and other emergency services is met with the knowledge of leading experts in their fields.

What happens when a firefighter realizes the job isn't what nearly killed him... but the life he built around it was?Thi...
06/17/2026

What happens when a firefighter realizes the job isn't what nearly killed him... but the life he built around it was?

This week on Hazard Class, Jake sits down with veteran firefighter captain and Crackyl Magazine founder Kory Pearn for one of the most honest conversations we've had about firefighter wellness, burnout, leadership, family, and what it really takes to build a sustainable career in the fire service.

After a life-threatening health crisis forced him to step away from the job, Kory began asking difficult questions about stress, identity, relationships, and why so many firefighters struggle long before retirement. The result was Crackyl Magazine, a platform dedicated to helping firefighters live healthier, more intentional lives both on and off duty.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why firefighter wellness starts with personal ownership
• Building an identity outside the firehouse
• Marriage, parenting, and family life in the fire service
• The dangers of burnout and chronic stress
• Leadership, culture, and kitchen-table conversations
• The future of firefighter health and longevity
• Kory's upcoming book, Firefighter Sigma

If you've ever wondered how to have a long career without sacrificing your health, family, or happiness, this is an episode you don't want to miss.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.

06/14/2026

"I get a call from our medical director. He says, 'Are you available for an emergency meeting tomorrow?' I said, 'Let me guess... Ebola?'"

Before the flights. Before the headlines. Before the world watched.

There was a room full of physicians, aviation experts, government officials, CDC representatives, and policymakers asking a simple question:

Can this be done safely?

In this clip, Dr. Doug Olson shares what happened when Phoenix Air was asked to do something that had never been done before—transport critically ill Ebola patients from West Africa to the United States.

The challenge wasn't just treating the disease. It was figuring out whether it was even possible to move one of the world's most feared pathogens thousands of miles without putting crews or the public at risk.

The meetings that followed would help shape one of the most significant medical evacuation operations in modern history.

Watch the full episode of Hazard Class wherever you get your podcasts.

06/13/2026

"When did you know the risk was worth it?"

For Dr. Doug Olson, the answer came when Ebola patients started surviving.

As part of the Phoenix Air team that performed the world's first long-distance airborne Ebola evacuations, Dr. Olson faced a challenge few medical professionals will ever encounter: transporting critically ill patients infected with one of the deadliest diseases on Earth.

The missions were dangerous. The stakes were enormous. And every flight carried risks for the crews involved.

In this clip, Dr. Olson reflects on the moment he realized the work was making a difference—and why bringing those patients home was worth the risk.

Watch the full conversation on Hazard Class.

NEW EPISODE: The Doctor Who Flew Ebola Patients HomeIn our latest episode of Hazard Class, I sit down with Dr. Doug Olso...
06/10/2026

NEW EPISODE: The Doctor Who Flew Ebola Patients Home

In our latest episode of Hazard Class, I sit down with Dr. Doug Olson, emergency physician, aviation medicine specialist, and Medical Director for Phoenix Air, to discuss one of the most extraordinary medical operations in modern history.

During the 2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak, Dr. Olson was part of the team that developed and executed some of the world's first long-distance airborne biocontainment medical evacuations—transporting critically ill Ebola patients from remote regions of Africa to advanced treatment centers in the United States.

We talk about:

• Critical care medicine at 40,000 feet

• The realities of transporting one of the world's deadliest infectious diseases

• How Phoenix Air built procedures that protected crews, patients, and the public

• Dr. Olson's path from emergency medicine into tactical and operational medicine

• The responsibility of bringing Americans home when the stakes couldn't be higher

• The real story behind the book No One's Coming by Kevin Hazzard

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.

Want to learn more? Check out No One's Coming by Kevin Hazzard, which chronicles the incredible Ebola evacuation missions that inspired this conversation.

06/08/2026

What makes someone risk their life for a person they've never met?

It's easy to celebrate courage after the fact. It's much harder to imagine the moment when someone has to make the decision.

No guarantees. No certainty. No promise they'll make it home.

Just a choice.

In my conversation with Kevin Hazzard, we discussed the doctors, nurses, pilots, and responders who willingly entered the heart of an Ebola outbreak to save complete strangers. Not because it was safe. Not because it was easy. But because someone needed help.

Real courage isn't the absence of fear. It's acting despite it.

In a world that often focuses on what's wrong, stories like these remind us that there are still people willing to risk everything for someone they'll never know.

FULL EPISODE STEAMING NOW

06/06/2026

History doesn't repeat itself exactly—but it rhymes.

One of the most fascinating parts of my conversation with Kevin Hazzard was the reminder that many of the challenges we face today aren't new. From Ebola outbreaks to COVID-19, from public skepticism to strained healthcare systems, history is full of examples that can help us prepare for what's next.

The problem is that once a crisis passes, we often convince ourselves it won't happen again. Funding gets cut. Programs disappear. Expertise fades. Then the next emergency arrives, and we're forced to relearn the same lessons under pressure.

Preparation can feel expensive, unnecessary, or even boring—right up until the moment it becomes essential.

Whether you're in emergency services, healthcare, public safety, or simply trying to make better decisions in an uncertain world, understanding the past is one of the best ways to prepare for the future.

What lessons from recent history do you think we're most at risk of forgetting?

So thrilled to team up with an awesome company like FLAME NATURAL DECON this summer!FLAME DECON is a specialized line of...
06/06/2026

So thrilled to team up with an awesome company like FLAME NATURAL DECON this summer!

FLAME DECON is a specialized line of personal care products, often used by firefighters, formulated with activated charcoal to safely remove toxic environmental contaminants, carcinogens, and heavy odors from the skin and hair.

Three companies - Three Charities - 1 awesome product with 3 exclusive scents.

$3 dollars from every bundle sold will go to help our partnered charities!

Hazard Class and The HazMat Guys are working to support The Firefighter's Carnival at Gillette Children's Hospital in St. Paul, MN. It is a great event that helps kids and families going through some of the toughest times imaginable have a care free afternoon filled with fun and games.

This year will be IAFF Local 21's 67th Year running the event!

NEW EPISODE: Kevin Hazzard on No One's Coming, Ebola Rescue Missions & the People Who Run Toward DangerWhat would make s...
06/03/2026

NEW EPISODE: Kevin Hazzard on No One's Coming, Ebola Rescue Missions & the People Who Run Toward Danger

What would make someone voluntarily fly into the middle of an Ebola outbreak when everyone else is trying to get out?

This week on Hazard Class, I sit down with bestselling author, former paramedic, and journalist Kevin Hazzard to discuss his incredible new book, No One's Coming.

Kevin takes us behind the scenes of one of the most remarkable medical rescue operations in modern history—the evacuation of Ebola patients during the 2014 West African outbreak. We dive into the pilots, nurses, physicians, and emergency responders who risked everything to save lives when the world was gripped by fear.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The true story behind No One's Coming
• How Kevin transforms real events into page-turning narratives
• The psychology of high-performance responders
• Ebola, COVID-19, and lessons in preparedness
• Why some people willingly run toward danger
• Adapting books into movies and television

If you're a firefighter, paramedic, hazmat technician, healthcare professional, pilot, emergency manager, or simply love incredible true stories, this is an episode you won't want to miss.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.

Have you read No One's Coming yet? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

The firehouse conversations that should never have been recorded... finally have been.Welcome to Episode 1 of Out of Ser...
06/02/2026

The firehouse conversations that should never have been recorded... finally have been.

Welcome to Episode 1 of Out of Service, the new podcast from Jake Ryks and Tyler DeLuca. No training. No tactics. No PowerPoints. Just the kind of conversations that happen when the rigs are back in service, the chores are done, and firefighters are trying to kill time between calls.

In this first episode, we debate truckies vs. engine companies, draft the ultimate fire alarm tool assignment, swap ridiculous fireground stories, discuss the return of cigarette ads, and somehow end up talking about illegal ni****ne products, boa constrictors, pooping in bunker gear, and a shockingly expensive EV battery firefighting gadget.

If you've ever sat around a firehouse kitchen table, you'll feel right at home.

Listen now and let us know: What's the dumbest conversation you've ever had while technically "working"?

14 Days In: Fat to Fit Challenge Update!Just completed my first weigh-in with the HAZARD CLASS: Fat to Fit Challenge, in...
06/01/2026

14 Days In: Fat to Fit Challenge Update!

Just completed my first weigh-in with the HAZARD CLASS: Fat to Fit Challenge, in partnership with Firefighter Peak Performance, and the results are in:

✅ 6.4 lbs lost
✅ 1.1% body fat reduction

I can’t praise Ryan’s program enough — it’s structured, smart, and sustainable. From nutrition tracking to tactical fitness assessments, every part of his system is designed to help you perform at your best, safely and effectively.

If you’re serious about firefighter fitness, career longevity, or just leveling up your health, I highly recommend checking out Ryan’s programs. His guidance is a game-changer!

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Key West, FL
33040, 33041, 33045

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