BY MICHAEL DELLAROCCO
It is often said that fire-fighters risk their lives every day. In fact, it is said so often that the words have lost the proper import and impact. Our personnel are sworn to protect lives and property and are taught that life safety is the first and foremost of our firefighting priorities. Do we really contemplate that risk and, if so, why do we continue to ignore the obvious? Firefighters risk their own lives every day mainly because of their own refusal to become physically fit.
The situation exists throughout the United States in career and volunteer fire departments. Many of the senior members wear their years of experience around their waist, and many of our younger members are fat and out of shape. Don’t worry about offending these “firefighters”; they know they’re overweight, but they don’t seem to care. For the most part, the fire service leadership in this country evidently doesn’t care, either. The quotation marks above are used because it is questionable whether some of these men and women could complete even the most basic of physical firefighting activities during routine circumstances. Under stress and the pressure to function at a major incident, one can only speculate on their ability to perform. Year after year, statistics tell us that poor cardiac health is killing the nation’s firefighters, but nobody, apparently, is paying attention.
Many articles have been written about physical training for the fire service, and there are a number of firefighters who do work to maintain their physical readiness and overall health. This article is not directed at them, except for the fact that they may have to do extra work to make up for others who cannot do their job and who are a true liability for their brother and sister firefighters, not to mention the citizens they are sworn to protect. Those citizens believe that the firefighter who arrives on an emergency scene will be properly trained and equipped, but also that he or she will be physically capable of performing the duties expected of a firefighter. Who would you want to come to your assistance—a well-trained, strong, healthy firefighter or a weak, obese blob who has only done enough to barely meet minimum standards (if any standards even exist). We need to raise the bar.
In the United States, 118 firefighters died while on duty in 2008. Heart attacks were cited as the most frequent cause that year, attributed to 45 firefighter deaths. In 2009, heart attacks were responsible for 43 (47.7 percent) of the total 90 on-duty firefighter fatalities. Sadly, so far in 2010, 40 deaths are listed by the United States Fire Administration as being caused by heart attacks or unknown factors and make up well over half of the number of on-duty firefighter fatalities (66 total at this writing).1
PHYSICAL ABILITY
To some degree, these could be preventable incidents. No one, of course, can absolutely predict every cardiac event, but can’t we at least reduce the odds against us? The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) and the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) saw the need for an objective standard of physical capability when the Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT) was developed and recognized by labor and management as a legitimate and valid assessment of a firefighter’s readiness for duty. It is a requirement that recruits pass the CPAT in many departments, but how many require the CPAT annually? Some departments, such as Utica, New York, offer a stipend for firefighters who complete the CPAT each year. Those who choose not to participate in this program are not penalized, but they do not receive the extra pay either. Peer pressure and strong encouragement from upper fire department management have resulted in more than 50 percent of the department’s completing the annual physical test within the minimum standard time allowed. In addition, at least one hour of physical fitness training is required for all personnel each day while on duty. In 2009, all Utica firefighters who participated successfully passed the CPAT evaluation.
SAFE DRIVING
Interestingly, some steps have been taken to try to reduce the other most common cause of firefighter fatalities, vehicle accidents. National standards now require seat belt use and so-called “black boxes” that record apparatus driving data. Awareness level and emergency vehicle operations classes are intended to save firefighter lives, though our actual record of success through these measures is still not proven. However, this problem is attracting attention. In time, official safety mandates and better training may effectively reduce the number of firefighter deaths caused by vehicle accidents. Reducing the number of heart attacks among firefighters may prove to be more difficult.
CARDIAC HEALTH RESEARCH
How do we ensure better cardiac health? One important way is through research. Dr. Denise Smith of Skidmore College and the University of Illinois and colleagues have completed several studies, and more work is underway with specific focus on firefighter cardiac issues.2,3
It will take years of extensive research to comprehend the physiological responses to firefighting activities. Although the studies done so far are significant, they may only indicate the tip of the iceberg in understanding and preventing firefighter cardiac deaths. Truly, the cardiovascular response to firefighting activities is intricate and complex, demanding scientific study that is obviously beyond the expertise of the most talented firefighter or chief. We are fortunate that Smith and her colleagues have become involved and are dedicated to this important work, and we owe them a huge debt of thanks.
NUTRITION AND HEALTH
The IAFF has recognized that diet is related to improved cardiac health. Traditional firehouse meals are famous, but they, unfortunately, are also famously high in saturated fat and calories. The IAFF provides its members with guidelines for better health and nutrition in the “Fit to Survive” section of the association’s Web site as part of its Wellness-Fitness Initiative.4 The site also addresses smoking cessation and reducing high blood pressure. It is indeed auspicious that an organization such as the IAFF has considered health, fitness, and nutrition as essential components of a firefighter’s fitness for duty and has provided suitable assistance to its members. The next appropriate step should be to expect that all career and volunteer firefighters and fire officers will recognize the wisdom of this good judgment and use it for their departments, but hope is not a strategy.
•••
Endnotes
1. United States Fire Administration, “2010 Firefighter Fatality Notices,” www.usfa.dhs.gov/fireservice/fatalities/.
2. Skidmore College, Health and Exercise Science Department, “What’s Happening in Health and Exercise Sciences,” http://cms.skidmore.edu/exercisescience/whats-happening.cfm.
3. University of Illinois, Fire Service Institute. “Firefighter Fatalities and Injuries: The Role of Heat Stress and PPE,” www.fsi.illinois.edu/documents/research/FFLSRC_FinalReport.pdf.
4. International Association of Fire Fighters, “Fit to Survive: The fire fighter’s guide to health and nutrition,” www.iaff.org/hs/FTS/ftsdefault.asp.
MICHAEL DELLAROCCO is the assistant chief in Schenectady, New York; an arson investigator; and a fire instructor and was New York state champion in the Firefighter Combat Challenge, Chief’s Division.
Fire Engineering Archives
