NFPA Journal - July/August 2017 - 85

Selected 2016 U.S. Firefighter Fatalities (continued)
or some other form of separation from the fire
service. In 2015, FBHA produced a report, published by the National Volunteer Fire Council
(NVFC) with support from USFA, on behavioral
health and suicide prevention, available online
at nvfc.org. In collaboration with the National
Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF), the Medical University of South Carolina has developed a
training course (helping-heroes.org) for counselors who work with firefighters. The NVFC has a
program for firefighters, EMTs, and their families
called Share the Load (nvfc.org) that points them
to resources and support for mental well-being.
The IAFF offers a peer-support training course
for its members.
Heart disease has long been recognized as a
significant factor in firefighter on-duty deaths,
and NFPA has several standards that focus on the
health risks to firefighters. For example, NFPA 1582,
Comprehensive Occupational Medical Program for
Fire Departments, outlines for fire departments the
medical requirements that must be met by candidate firefighters and incumbent fire department
members. NFPA 1500, Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program, calls for fire
departments to establish a firefighter health and
fitness program that meets NFPA 1583, HealthRelated Fitness Programs for Fire Department
Members, and requires that firefighters meet the
medical requirements of NFPA 1582.
Information on developing wellness-fitness programs is also available from other organizations,
including the Fire Service Joint Labor-Management Wellness-Fitness Initiative by the IAFF
and the International Association of Fire Chiefs
(available online at iafc.org), and NVFC's HeartHealthy Firefighter Program (healthy-firefighter.
org/), which was launched in 2003 to address
heart attack prevention for all firefighters and
EMS personnel through fitness, nutrition, and
health awareness.
This study is made possible by the cooperation
and assistance of the U.S. fire service, the Public
Safety Officers' Benefits Program of the Department of Justice, NIOSH, the USFA, the Forest
Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture,
and the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Bureau
of Land Management of the U.S. Department of
the Interior. The authors would also like to thank
Carl E. Peterson, retired from NFPA's Public Fire
Protection Division, and Chris Farrell and Tom
McGowan of NFPA's Public Fire Protection Division, for their assistance on the study.
RITA F. FAHY, PH.D., is manager of fire databases and
systems in NFPA's Fire Analysis and Research Division.
PAUL R. LEBLANC is a fire data assistant at NFPA and a
retired lieutenant with the Boston, Massachusetts, Fire
Department. JOSEPH L. MOLIS is a fire data assistant at
NFPA and a lieutenant with the Providence, Rhode Island,
Fire Department.

of floor area. Arriving fire
companies were greeted with
a strong odor of mercaptan, a
harmless, non-toxic, colorless
gas with a pungent odor similar to rotten eggs. It is mixed
with the odorless natural gas
to warn of, or trace, gas leaks.
They traced the leak to the
basement. Twenty minutes
after arrival, firefighters shut
the gas off.
The second level of the
dwelling was being used as
an illegal marijuana growing
operation and was well-sealed,
providing little ventilation. A
powerful explosion originated
in the rear second-level bedroom approximately one hour
after the initial alarm. The
explosion reduced the house to
rubble, sending portions of the
roof flying through the air. One
such section struck a battalion
fire chief who was directing
operations from the middle
of the street. He was taken
directly to a hospital where he
died from his traumatic injuries.
Six other firefighters sustained
non-fatal injuries.
Applicable standard:
NFPA 1001, Fire Fighter Professional Qualifications, 2013
edition, Chapter 5.
TRAUMA SUSTAINED IN FALL
IN PREPARATION TO RESPOND
On September 19 at 10 a.m.,
the fire department received
an alarm to assist police gain
entrance to a building that had
been burglarized.
A 61-year-old firefighter with
43 years of service was preparing to respond to the call from
his home when he tripped and
fell, severely injuring himself.
His wife called the fire station
after firefighters returned from
the call and notified the fire
chief what had occurred.
The fire chief and firefighters
responded to the firefighter's
house where they found him
still on the floor. They provided
first aid and an ambulance
transported the firefighter to
the hospital.
The following day, the injured
firefighter suffered a heart
attack but was resuscitated.
The day after that, at 4:50 a.m.,
he was pronounced dead at the
hospital. The death certificate
listed the nature of death as
blunt force trauma to the trunk
of his body.
STRUCK BY TREE LIMB
DURING BRUSH FIRE
On October 29, a fire company
was dispatched to a brush fire.
During extinguishment, the
apparatus was struck by a falling snag (tree limb) that broke
into two pieces, one hitting the

apparatus and the other hitting and injuring a 41-year-old
firefighter.
The firefighter was pulling
hose from the rear of a brush
mini pumper when he was
struck. He received medical
attention immediately and was
airlifted to a hospital.
On November 17, he died from
complications of blunt force
traumatic injuries to his head.

the number of deaths
resulting from false
calls in 2016. Nine such
deaths have occurred
over the past 10 years.
Applicable standards:
NFPA 1002, Fire Apparatus
Driver/Operator Professional
Qualifications, 2017 edition;
NFPA 1051, Wildland Firefighting Personnel Professional
Qualifications, 2016 edition.
SUDDEN CARDIAC DEATH
FOLLOWING VEHICLE FIRE
On November 7 at 11:55 p.m.,
the fire department was called
for a fire in a tractor-trailer on
an interstate highway.
Shortly after the fire was
extinguished, as the fire chief
talked with a state police officer and the driver of the truck
at the command post, he collapsed and fell to the ground,
unresponsive. The firefighters
and other first responders on
scene performed CPR before
the chief was transported to
a hospital where he was pronounced dead. The nature of
death was listed as a heart
attack.
Applicable standard:
NFPA 1582, Comprehensive
Occupational Medical Program
for Fire Departments, 2013 edition, Chapter 7.
CRASH DURING RESPONSE
TO EMS CALL
On December 19 at 5 p.m., a
43-year-old firefighter with one
year of service was responding
to an EMS call in his pickup
truck when he lost control of
the vehicle, went left of the
road's dividing line, overcorrected, then struck a guard rail,
causing the truck to flip over
and eject him. He was not wearing his seat belt at the time of
the crash.
He was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced
dead.

N F PA . O R G / J O U R N A L * NFPA JOURNAL

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - July/August 2017