Operate firefighting equipment.

Operate firefighting equipment. is a detailed work activity in O*NET — a concrete unit of work shared across 4 occupations and seen in 8 occupation-specific tasks. It rolls up into the broader work activity Protect people or property from threats such as fires or flooding. in Performing General Physical Activities .

Detailed work activities are the most granular shared layer in O*NET's work-activity hierarchy (Generalized → Intermediate → Detailed → occupation-specific task). The figures below describe how this activity shows up across the economy and what independent studies measure about AI and this kind of work — not a prediction that the work will be automated.

AI exposure

Of the 8 tasks under this activity that the OpenAI / Eloundou “GPTs are GPTs” study rated, 0 (0%) are flagged as directly exposed to language models (E1) or exposed via model-powered tools (E2).

Exposure estimates overlap with model capabilities — whether a model could speed the task up — not whether the work will be done by software. Observed AI use is augmentation and assistance today, not jobs replaced.

Member tasks

Occupation-specific tasks O*NET maps to this detailed work activity, most important first.

• Create openings in buildings for ventilation or entrance, using axes, chisels, crowbars, electric saws, or core cutters. · Firefighters · importance 4.5 · no direct exposure
• Drive and operate fire fighting vehicles and equipment. · Firefighters · importance 4.5 · no direct exposure
• Position and climb ladders to gain access to upper levels of buildings, or to rescue individuals from burning structures. · Firefighters · importance 4.5 · no direct exposure
• Serve as a working leader of an engine, hand, helicopter, or prescribed fire crew of three or more firefighters. · First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers · importance 4.5 · no direct exposure
• Operate pumps connected to high-pressure hoses. · Firefighters · importance 4.4 · no direct exposure
• Extinguish smaller fires with portable extinguishers, shovels, and axes. · Forest Fire Inspectors and Prevention Specialists · importance 4.2 · no direct exposure
• Extinguish flames and embers to suppress fires, using shovels or engine- or hand-driven water or chemical pumps. · Firefighters · importance 4.0 · no direct exposure
• Use fire suppression methods in industrial emergencies. · Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers · importance 3.7 · no direct exposure

Occupations that perform this

• Firefighters
• First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers
• Forest Fire Inspectors and Prevention Specialists
• Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

@misc{singulariki-operate-firefighting-equipment,
  title  = {Operate firefighting equipment.},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/detailed-activities/operate-firefighting-equipment}
}