NFPA Journal - July/August 2013 - (Page 69)

A 17-year veteran fire lieutenant was killed while battling a blaze in Brooklyn, New York, in April 2012, becoming the first city firefighter to die in the line of duty in three years. expected. Almost 60 percent of the firefighters over age 40 who died in 2012, and all of the victims over age 60, died of heart attacks or other cardiac events. The youngest victim of sudden cardiac death was 24. Vehicle crashes In 2012, 16 firefighters died in 12 vehicle crashes. Seven of them were killed in separate crashes while responding to incidents, and one was killed while returning from an incident. Five of the eight were passengers in the vehicle. Three were responding to the scene of motor vehicle crashes, three were responding to wildland fires, one was responding to a structure fire, and one was returning from a call concerning a carbon monoxide detector activation. Six firefighters were also killed in two aircraft crashes at wildland fires. Four died when their aircraft flew into a microburst and then crashed while they were dropping retardant on the fire. The other two firefighters were also in an aircraft dropping fire retardant when their aircraft struck mountainous terrain. Two firefighters died in crashes while involved in fire department business. One was driving his fire department vehicle to a meeting when he was struck by another vehicle that lost control on a highway. He was wearing a seatbelt. The other victim was returning from a meeting on his motorcycle when he struck a car that pulled out into the road in front of him. Of the 10 firefighters who died in road vehicles, five were not wearing Photograph: AP/Wide World seatbelts and four were. Of the five who were not wearing seatbelts, four were ejected and one was not. None of the four victims wearing seatbelts was ejected. The tenth victim was riding a motorcycle. Factors reported in the crashes included excessive speed, driver inattention, weather conditions, driver inexperience, and failure to maintain control of the vehicle. Other findings Four firefighters were killed in connection with intentionally set fires last year, two at the scene of the fires and two while responding to a fire. All were structure fires. From 2003 through 2012, 44 firefighters, or 5 percent of all firefighters who died on duty, died in connection with intentionally set fires. The number of these deaths has been dropping since 1985. In 2012, one firefighter died as a result of a false alarm. Over the past 10 years, 23 firefighter deaths resulted from false calls, including malicious false alarms and alarm malfunctions. The firefighters who died last year ranged in age from 17 to 79, with a median age of 49. Over the past five years, career and volunteer firefighters in their 20s and 30s have the lowest death rates, with a rate about half the all-age average, while firefighters aged 60 and over have a death rate almost four times the average. Firefighters aged 50 and over accounted for almost half of all firefighter deaths over the five-year period but represent only one-fifth of all career and volunteer firefighters in the United States. where they were treated for fractures, contusions, lung inflammation from fighting the fire, and smoke inhalation. The fire lieutenant was also removed from under debris and was pronounced dead at the scene from smoke inhalation and thermal burns. The fire was determined to have resulted from an extension cord that had been mechanically damaged when an upholstered chair was placed on it, causing the extension cord to overheat and ignite the chair. NIOSH investigated this incident and offers recommendations on its website at www.cdc.gov/niosh/fire/ reports/face201208.html Struck by Vehicle On March 19, at 10:30 p.m., fire and police units responded to a singlevehicle crash. The crash occurred when a driver swerved to avoid hitting a vehicle that was stopped partly in her lane. Her vehicle crossed the two-lane county highway and slid off the road into a ditch. Before stopping, it struck a natural gas meter and its associated piping, creating a gas leak. The fire apparatus was staffed by a fire captain and one firefighter. On arrival, the firefighter driving the engine and the police officer driving his patrol car parked their vehicles, with their emergency lights flashing, a short distance before the crash site, blocking their travel lane to protect themselves. The firefighters, dressed in station uniforms with reflective vests, went to the uninjured victim and were able to walk her away from her vehicle and the leaking gas meter. She went across the street and stayed with a witness who stopped to help. The firefighters then went to see if they could shut off the gas. After they realized that they could not stop the flow of gas, the two firefighters and police officer moved upwind along the shoulder of the roadway. They requested that the gas company speed up their response. A short time later, a van passed the fire engine and police vehicle by driving in the on-coming traffic lane, increased its speed, and drove onto the shoulder, striking the two firefighters and officer. The victim of the original crash was the mother of the van driver. She had telephoned him and told him of the crash. The 56-year-old fire captain was killed instantly. The impact threw him JULY/AUGUST 2013 NFPA JOURNAL 69 http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/fire/reports/face201208.html http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/fire/reports/face201208.html

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - July/August 2013

NFPA Journal - July/August 2013
Contents
First Word
In a Flash
Perspectives
Firewatch
Research
Heads Up
Structural Ops
In Compliance
Buzzwords
Outreach
Electrical Safety
Wildfire Watch
Loud + Clear
Allied in Safety
Front Burner
Firefighter Fatalities in the United States, 2012
Fire Analysis + Research
Section Spotlight
What’s Hot
Looking Back

NFPA Journal - July/August 2013