Personal Health
- Physical fitness- increases strength, helps to maintain a healthy weight (decreases cancer risk, decreases mental illness, decrease medical illnesses).
- A healthy diet helps promote overall health.
- Annual firefighter physicals should be incorporated into your wellness fitness routine.
- Your doctor should be familiar with the increased risk of cancer in firefighters.
- Eliminate tobacco use
- Diesel exhaust- a known carcinogen that we are exposed to on a continuous basis. Use diesel exhaust removal systems whenever possible.
Personal Protective Equipment
- Firefighting turnout gear should fit and be worn properly to provide the greatest protection.
- Firefighters should wear clean turnout gear whenever possible.
- Firefighters should be encouraged to wear full personal protective equipment throughout all exterior and interior fireground operations.
- Firefighters should wear self-contained breathing apparatus through all stages of fire, including overhaul.
- Many departments rely on carbon monoxide detectors as a method to determine if SCBA is needed.
- The Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue study (2/25/11) shows that there is very little correlation between carbon monoxide and other very toxic gases like nitrogen dioxide, acrolein, arsenic and mercury all found when CO levels were low.
- In addition to visible smoke there are concerns that particles not visible to the human eye will be inhaled and cause serious lung problems.
On-scene and Post Incident Decontamination
Firefighters should perform on scene gross decontamination (decon) as soon as firefighting duties are complete:
- Gross decon will remove up to 85% of the contaminates on the firefighter.
- Gross decon will limit the amount of cross contamination ultimately reducing the firefighter’s exposure.
- Before rehab firefighters should use decontamination wipes to remove contamination from exposed skin. This process alone can remove up to 50% of the skin contamination and prevent ingesting carcinogens.
- Firefighters should shower as soon as possible and change into clean clothes to stop the exposure.
- Wear medical gloves and proper respiratory protection when cleaning equipment.
- Control contamination spread by using seat covers. Consider disposable covers, garbage bags, painter drop clothes, for your apparatus and personal vehicles.
- Wash all equipment and apparatus used on the fire scene to limit cross contamination.
- If contaminated equipment cannot be cleaned on scene, store in an exterior compartment or an air tight container, garbage bag until it is cleaned for the next call.
- Dirty gear, tools and equipment should never be brought into homes or living spaces at the fire house.