NFPA Journal - July/August 2019 - 83

Selected 2018 US Firefighter Fatalities (continued)
carcinogens and physical and emotional stress and strain. There are
other sources that can provide insight
into those hazards.
The Firefighter Behavioral Health
Alliance has reports on 82 firefighters
and 21 EMTs and paramedics who died
by suicide in 2018. For 2018, the USFA
is processing more than a dozen fatalities that potentially qualify for federal
death benefits under the Hometown
Heroes Act (deaths within 24 hours
of non-routine strenuous or stressful physical activity). We know from
research by the National Institute
for Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH) that firefighters are 9 percent
more likely to have a cancer diagnosis,
and 14 percent more likely to die of
cancer, than the general population.
The International Association of Fire
Fighters (IAFF) lists on its website
(iaff.org) 120 firefighter cancer deaths
in 2018.
In 2018, Congress passed legislation
directing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to develop
and maintain a voluntary registry of
firefighters in the US that can be used
to monitor the incidence of cancer
in the fire service. This data will be
linked to data in state cancer registries
and will be available to researchers.
NIOSH will develop and maintain the
registry, which will be open to all current and former firefighters.
NFPA's Fire Protection Research
Foundation is involved in a 30-year
cohort study to track exposures and
effects, as well as a study to develop
prototypes for a real-time particulate and toxic gas sensor to alert firefighters to
hazards in the air. The foundation released a
report last year on the development and implementation of a fire service contaminant control
campaign. The findings from these studies will
inform relevant NFPA standards for the fire service as well as educational and training programs
aimed at reducing firefighter exposures.
Recognition of the importance of behavioral
health programs and peer support for firefighters
has become widespread in recent years. As with
heart disease and cancer, behavioral issues can
follow firefighters after their careers, whether
in retirement or in some other form of separation from the fire service. Many programs exist
to address these problems, including Share the
Load, an effort by the National Volunteer Fire
Council (NVFC) that connects firefighters, EMTs,
and their families with resources and support for

structural integrity of the building. A decision was made that
firefighters would re-enter the
structure to extinguish hot spots
on the third and fourth stories
that were obscured due to roofing materials obstructing water
streams. An aerial platform was
raised to a fourth-floor window
where two firefighters wearing
full protective ensembles and
using SCBA exited the bucket,
stretching a hand line into the
building to search for and extinguish hotspots. The firefighters
were told not to go near the previous collapse area. Two more
firefighters climbed the aerial
platform to assist in operations
when the interior crew's air
supply became low, and the two
interior firefighters returned to
overhauling after replenishing air
cylinders. Four firefighters were
now inside the building on the
fourth floor performing overhaul
when a collapse occurred, dropping them to the ground in a pile
of debris.
The incident commander
immediately called a mayday
but a RIT crew had not been
established earlier. On-scene
firefighters became rescuers,
and in approximately 11 minutes
two victims were rescued. As rescuers searched for the other two
firefighters, who remained buried
in the rubble, they could hear
their colleagues' PASS devices
deep in the debris. Both were
located and extricated approximately 30 minutes after the
collapse. Both firefighters died.
The victims included a
50-year-old firefighter with 20
years of experience who suffered
multiple blunt-force trauma
injuries. The second firefighter
was 29 years old and had been
a member of the department
for seven years. He also died of
blunt-force trauma with traumatic asphyxiation.
CARDIAC EVENT AT
FIREHOUSE WHILE PREPARING
FOR DRILL
A 31-year-old captain who was
the son of the fire chief was at the
firehouse alone preparing for an
upcoming company drill. He was
wearing his protective ensemble
and using SCBA.
The fire chief, driving by the
firehouse, saw his son's truck
and stopped to see what he was
doing. He opened the front door
of the firehouse and heard a PASS
device sounding. He found his
son unresponsive on the apparatus floor with his face piece
off, but wearing his SCBA. The
chief immediately requested an
advanced life support ambulance.
The victim had been with the
department for 15 years and
was an active member. He had
a pre-existing condition of deep

vein thrombosis and pulmonary
embolisms. According to his physician, he had been cleared for
firefighting duties and activities.
VEHICLE CRASH AND
DROWNING DURING
EMERGENCY RESPONSE
Late at night during a snowstorm, the local fire department
was summoned to a residence
for a person needing aid for a
diabetic emergency. The home
was located in a distant, rural
part of the response district. A
medic unit responded, as well as
a captain in his personal vehicle.
While responding, the captain
failed to negotiate a 90-degree
right turn on an unlit country
road. His truck drove off the
road through a drainage ditch
and into a pond. The 33-year-old
dialed 911 as water rushed into
his truck. He told the dispatcher
what happened and remained
on the line as the dispatcher
sent additional units to his aid.
He removed his seatbelt and
was trying to get out of the
submerged truck but could not.
The dispatcher remained on the
phone with the victim until he did
not answer.
The medic unit that was sent
for the initial emergency call was
able to respond after the diabetic patient refused treatment.
Arriving on scene, they found
the firefighter's truck 15 feet (4.6
meters) from shore, submerged
to the roof with just the light bar
sticking out of the water. They
began setting up operations
and requested appropriate
resources. Three firefighters
donned cold-water immersion
suits, entered the water, and
approached the vehicle. They
extricated the victim's body
from the car and brought him to
shore where the advanced life
support medics were waiting. It
took approximately 55 minutes
from the initial call to the victim's
arrival at the hospital, where he
was pronounced dead. The medical examiner listed his cause of
death as drowning.
The department provided all
members with counseling services including the dispatcher
who stayed on the phone with
him as he attempted to escape
from the vehicle.
CARDIAC EVENT FOLLOWING
STRENUOUS ACTIVITY DURING
RESCUE
A 32-year-old assistant chief
was at the firehouse cleaning
equipment that had been
used in a trench rescue earlier in the day. He was found
unresponsive in the firehouse
bathroom by his coworkers who
immediately performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The
chief had performed strenuous

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NFPA Journal - July/August 2019

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