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NW Fire works to keep firefighters safe from cancer

At high risk from burning synthetics

By: Craig Smith

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MARANA, Ariz. (KGUN) — Firefighters work to save lives. Now research is showing their own lives are in danger from exposure to cancer causing chemicals. January is Cancer Awareness month. With that in mind, KGUN9 learned more about how Northwest Fire Districtworks to protect its firefighters.

Firefighters can put their lives in immediate danger almost every single day. But now there’s a growing realization that that working lifestyle can lead to long term danger—of cancer far in the future.”

When a modern building burns it’s not just wood and paint it’s all sorts of hazardous materials, as plastics and synthetic fabrics become toxic to breathe and toxic to the touch.

Northwest Fire District Assistant Chief Scott Hamblen says, “We used to say that firefighters were at extreme risk for cardiac arrest or some sort of major medical issue and in fact, firefighter deaths related to cancer have surpassed that number.”

Chief Hamblen says that rising awareness has led to tougher precautions to help keep firefighters safe from cancer.

Firefighters will stay on air packs longer to keep breathing pure air instead of toxic fumes.

Firefighters and their gear will get wet decontamination and bare skin gets a wipe down.

And Northwest takes steps to make sure firefighters don’t carry contamination away from the fire scene.

“Immediately upon their return to the fire station, they take a shower, they get clean. They don't take any of the stuff that they wore in the fire in the cab of the truck back with them. They bag it up and put it outside the cab. This leads towards what we kind of look at clean environments, the inside of the truck where they ride, the inside of their fire station where they live.”

Assistant Chief Hamblen says new firefighters learn these cancer safeguards from their first days in the academy so they can stay safe and healthy throughout their careers and into retirement.

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