A North East fire and rescue service has become the first in the UK to support research that could help to save firefighters' lives.
Participating firefighters at Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service (TWFRS) have undergone health monitoring, which explores the potential effects of contaminants produced from fires, to support research into firefighter safety The potentially life-saving research was commissioned by the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) and is being carried out by the University of Central Lancashire and looks at the need for thorough decontamination and the links to cancer in firefighters.
It is led by experts in fire chemistry and toxicology and comes following the publication of new research in January which found that instances of cancer among firefighters aged 35 - 39 is up to 323% higher than the general population in the same age category. The research also found that firefighters are significantly more likely to die from cancer, heart attacks, stroke, and several other diseases.
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As part of the research, TWFRS invited leading professor in the field, Anna Stec, professor in fire chemistry and toxicity at UCLAN, to their headquarters to collect biological samples from volunteering firefighters. She said: "It is vital that firefighters can continue to do their jobs as safely as possible, and the research shows that measures such as health monitoring and reducing exposure from contaminants at the workplace will play an important part in protecting firefighters.”
"We hope that working with organisations like TWFRS will not only help us to create a safer working environment in Tyne and Wear, but will also introduce a change to the wider sector."
The research is the first of its kind to take place for firefighters in the UK, despite the World Health Organisation ruling that occupational exposure as a firefighter is carcinogenic. Today, Tyne and Wear Deputy Chief Fire Officer Peter Heath welcomed the research as a "huge step forward" for firefighter safety.
He said: "This is a huge step forward in the continuous drive towards improving firefighter safety and I’m proud of our firefighters for volunteering to take part in this vital research into the potential effects of contaminants.
"We hosted a seminar last year about DECON alongside the FBU and have been clear that we want to work with academics and our union representatives to make the role even safer. We have made significant investment in firefighter safety and that will continue in the coming years."
Wayne Anderson, FBU Secretary for TWFRS, said: "This is a brave step in the fire and rescue sector and we want to thank TWFRS for working with us to make this research a priority. Firefighter safety is so important and it has come a long way but there is more we can do as a sector to improve the lives of our firefighters."
The service has already taken steps to incorporate Professor Stec's advice into its firefighters' everyday lives, including investing in new appliances that offer clean cab technology and particulate monitoring within the cabs. They have also created an allocated decontamination locker on fire appliances to store dirty PPE and equipment, while welfare decontamination packs have been introduced at stations for firefighters returning from difficult incidents.
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