A study conducted by researchers at the University of Edinburgh found firefighters exposed to extremely high heat experienced elevated core body temperatures for up to four hours after exposure and their blood became “stickier” and more likely to form clots.
If you use chemical smoke simulants during training exercises you should read this.
Good news from the NFPA. On-duty firefighter deaths in 2012were the second lowest in 35 years and the number of sudden cardiac arrests was the lowest on record.
NIOSH recommendations call for annual medical evaluations, stress tests, medical clearance to wear SCBC, mandatory fitness program and annual physical fitness evaluation.
Firefighters claim the companies knew or should have known that the sirens were inherently dangerous, defective and hazardous to human hearing.
Captain Michael Goodwin, a 30 year veteran of the Philadelphia Fire Department, was killed when a third floor roof collapsed. Firefighter Andrew Godlewski was injured while trying to rescue Goodwin and is in stable condition in the hospital.
The Scottish Crown has now decided to invoke criminal charges under their health and safety laws against the fire service. They are charged with breaching section two of the Health and Safety at Work Act, which states “it shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his employees”.
A second charge pertains to failure to carry out risk assessments at work.