Current Firefighter Research Articles

Field-Driven Physical Fitness Assessment for Firefighters: Overcoming Challenges and Improving Standards

Being a firefighter is a profession that requires a higher level of physical fitness compared to the general population. This fitness is crucial for effectively carrying out firefighting duties in specialized environments. The level of physical fitness is assessed during the initial employment examination and periodically evaluated throughout the firefighter's career. However, after conducting expert group interviews and surveys with current firefighters, several issues were identified with the current system, which mainly consists of basic physical fitness assessments. These issues include a lack of relevance to actual firefighting tasks, a high risk of injury for participants, inadequate reliability of measurement instruments and assessors, and a failure to incorporate appropriate exercises for improving physical fitness. To address these concerns, an analysis was conducted on the implementation of the U.S. Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT) and the performance evaluation of 629 domestic firefighters before and after an 8-week training program. The analysis revealed a significant reduction of approximately 18% in completion time and 17% in oxygen consumption pressure after the training period. These findings highlight the need to move beyond simple physical fitness assessments and develop a new fitness testing system that is specifically tailored to the demands of modern firefighting tasks. This study provides essential data that can serve as a foundation for future research on the development of an improved firefighting fitness testing system. The goal is to establish a reliable and trustworthy system that aligns with public expectations.

Mindfulness Surrounding Eating Among Current Firefighters, Law Enforcement Officers, and Military Personnel and Its Relationship to Weight Status

ObjectivesObesity among first responders and military personnel is a major concern for personal health and occupational performance, with 40% of law enforcement (LE) officers obese, 70–75% of firefighters overweight/obese, and about 25% of the military personnel overweight/obese. There is also high occurrence of anxiety, depression, substance abuse, emotional strain, sleep disturbances, and suicide among these groups. A point of connection is mindfulness surrounding eating, as it is related to obesity, such that as mindfulness during eating decreases, body mass index (BMI) increases from excess calorie intake. The purpose of this study was to determine level of mindfulness surrounding eating among current firefighters, LE officers, and military personnel and how it relates to weight status. MethodsThis cross-sectional study employed an online survey shared via social media and email, including demographics, physical activity level, diet type and perceived healthfulness, BMI, and 20-item mindful eating questionnaire (MEQ). Descriptive statistics assessed level of mindfulness of the tactical groups. Correlation coefficients were calculated to determine relationships between MEQ scores and demographics, physical activity level, diet type and perceived healthfulness, and BMI. ResultsPreliminary data from 120 surveys (85% fire, 2.5% LE, 12.5% military) indicate MEQ scores for all tactical groups ranged from 2.50–4.47 out of 5. Average MEQ score (± standard deviation) for all tactical groups was 3.13 ± 0.46, with a score of 3 indicating mostly neutral/lack mindfulness surrounding eating. MEQ scores were similar across tactical occupations (fire = 3.12 ± 0.47, LE = 3.33 ± 0.80, military = 3.17 ± 0.70). ConclusionsConsidering negative consequences of obesity among these groups for themselves, one another, and those they serve, investigating mindfulness surrounding eating indicates ambivalence and need for further research, including intervention, in this area. Funding SourcesOklahoma State University Freshman Research Scholars program.

Cohort Profile: Firefighter Research on the Enhancement of Safety and Health (FRESH), a Prospective Cohort Study on Korean Firefighters.

Firefighters have a high risk of developing cardiovascular and mental disorders due to their physical and chemical environments. However, in Korea, few studies have been conducted on environmental risk of firefighters. The Firefighter Research on the Enhancement of Safety and Health (FRESH) study aimed to discover the risk factors for cardiovascular disease and mental disorders among firefighters. Former and current firefighters were recruited from three university hospitals. A total of 1022 participants completed baseline health examinations from 2016 to 2017. All participants were scheduled for follow-ups every 2 years. Baseline health survey, laboratory testing of blood and urine samples, blood heavy metal concentration, urine polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) metabolites, stress-related hormone test, natural killer cell activity, as well as physical and mental health examinations that focused on cardiovascular and mental disorders, were conducted. In addition, 3 Tesla (3T) brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and neuropsychological tests were also performed to investigate structural and functional changes in the brains of 352 firefighters aged >40 years or new hires with less than 1 year of service.

Cumulative Firefighter Exposure to Multiple Toxins Emitted During Prescribed Burns in Australia

Firefighters in the line of duty are exposed to many hazardous air toxics released from burning vegetation and other materials that may cause severe health risks. Current literature does not consider complex mixtures and cumulative impacts of these air toxics when assessing firefighter exposure risk. This study aims to determine if cumulative exposure to mixtures of air toxics will put firefighters at risk in the context of current firefighter exposure regulations. This was tested using CO exposure and air toxics data collected during prescribed burns. Personal CO monitors were deployed to 122 firefighters at 31 prescribed burns across Australian temperate forests. CO concentrations were used to determine equivalent exposures for air toxics using their emission ratio, which were then used to calculate cumulative exposure. Average personal monitor CO exposure was 9.2 ppm across all burns, with 1-min maximum ranging between 0.3 and 703 ppm. Work safe Australia exposure standards were exceeded for 6 firefighters out of 122. Five individual firefighters had average cumulative exposures exceeding 100% exposure limit. Six toxicological classes were identified to be the most hazardous, causing eye disorders, upper and lower respiratory disorders, skin disorders and cancer. Across these classes, three toxins contributed significantly to the cumulative exposure; respirable particles (< 3 μm), formaldehyde and acrolein. Using the cumulative exposure methodology as described here and a reduction in the CO exposure standards to account for the numerous air toxics emitted during a fire would supply decision makers with a tool to better identify exposure risks.

Лес и спички

Лес и спички

A Meta Study of the Relationship Between Phase Change Material Parameters and Temperature Reduction in Fire Fighter Protective Clothing

Firefighters are exposed to high risk scenarios in which the prevention of extreme heat injuries is largely dependent on the effectiveness of their protective clothing. The following meta-study examines contemporary literature to determine the usefulness of phase change materials (PCM’s) in improving the effectiveness of the current firefighter protective clothing (FFPC) model in order to better protect firefighters. The time- temperature for multiple PCM’s in environments with low, medium and high heat fluxes (taken as 2.5-5 kW/m2 for 700 seconds, 10-15 kW/m2 for 300 seconds and 20-40 kW/m2for 30 seconds respectively) were compared in terms of the rate of temperature increase and final temperature. The study found that PCM I produced the best temperature reduction in a low flux, PCM K did so in a medium flux, and PCM B did so in a high flux. The study also found that overall the PCMs were most effective in a low flux, therefore further study should be directed towards creating PCMs that are more effective in high-flux environments.&#x0D; Keywords: Phase Change Material; Fire Fighter Protective Clothing; Heat Flux

화재진압 중 소방관의 돌발 고위험상황 노출 경험과 개인보호구 개선요구사항 실태조사

We conducted a nationalwide questionnaire to investigate accidental experiences and injuries at flashover or flame-fire for active firefighters in the line of duty. A total of 794 firefighters participated in this survey (764 males, 27 females, and 3 respondents; 39.2 ± 8.4 yr in age, 173.7 ± 5.1 cm in height, 73.4 ± 8.6 kg in body mass). The results showed that high risk circumstances the most frequently experienced while firefighting in Korea was flashover followed by backdraft, rollover and flameover. At the high risk circumstances the most frequently-experienced injuries were bruise, stabs and burns. Firefighters hoped to reduce the total mass of personal protective equipment (PPE), improve the mobility of the PPE and dexterity of protective gloves, so that they could escape from the high risk circumstances as fast as possible. In particular, requirements for improvement on protective gloves were greater than those on other PPE. The present study suggested that the need for improvements on the current firefighters’ PPE to cope with emergency high risk situations in terms of PPE mass reduction and mobility.

The effects of moisture on the thermal protective performance of firefighter protective clothing under medium intensity radiant exposure

Current firefighter protective clothing is composed of multilayer fabric systems. The outer shell fabrics inevitably become wet in the process of firefighters performing their duties, and sweat may also increase moisture in the inner layers of protective clothing. In this study, two kinds of outer shell fabrics (aramid IIIA fabric and aramid 1313 and flame-retardant viscose-blended fabric) and two kinds of thermal liner fabrics with different thicknesses were selected. Three wetness conditions were simulated for the outer shell fabric, thermal liner fabric and both fabrics together. A modified thermal protective performance (TPP) tester was applied to assess TPP provided by these wetted fabrics; in addition, second-degree skin burn time was predicted and absorbed energy indexes were calculated. The regression method was employed to create fitting curves for absorbed energy and second-degree burn time in different configurations and the Pearson correlation was established to analyze their relationship, in which the lowest R2 value could reach 0.9122 and p-values were all much less than 0.05. Performance results for both wet conditions indicated that outer shell moisture and a thicker thermal liner have a positive and increased negative effect, respectively, on fabric TPP. When the sample S-3-D (aramid 1313 and flame-retardant viscose-blended fabric, moisture barrier and the thin thermal liner) was both wetted in the outer shell and thermal liner, its second-degree burn time was improved by 12.8% over performance in dry conditions. These findings may have important applications for the design and manufacture of optimal protective performance clothing systems.

Impact of dioxins on antipyrine metabolism in firefighters

Antipyrine (AP) metabolism was used to assess factors associated with the activity of hepatic oxidative enzymes in firefighters. Emphasis was placed on 3-hydroxymethylantipyrine (3HMAP), the metabolite with the greatest dependence on dioxin-inducible cytochrome P4501A2 (CYP1A2) activity. AP urinary metabolites were measured by HPLC in 38 male subjects from Eastern Siberia. Subjects were divided into three groups having similar ages and BMIs: current firefighters (n=11); former firefighters (n=17) and non-firefighters (n=10). Multiple regression models were constructed using the three major AP metabolites as a dependent variable to assess the influence of age, smoking as urinary cotinine concentration, dioxin exposure (as either WHO-TEQ or body burden), group, and CYP1A2*F (-163C>A) genotypes. Models for the proportion of dose excreted as the metabolite 3HMAP produced the best fit (adjusted R(2)=0.46, p<0.05). When the models were restricted to current firefighters, only those based on 3HMAP were statistically significant (adjusted R(2) of 0.80 (p<0.002)) due to contributions from urinary cotinine (β=0.56, p<0.01) and dioxin expressed as body burden (β=0.55, p=0.014). These results indicate that the antipyrine test can be used as metabolic probe of biological response to recent dioxin exposure provided the impact of smoking is carefully controlled.

A test of the interpersonal theory of suicide in a large sample of current firefighters

Recent research suggests that firefighters experience elevated rates of suicidal ideation and behaviors. The interpersonal theory of suicide may shed light on this finding. This theory postulates that suicidal desire is strongest among individuals experiencing perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness, and that the combination of suicide desire and acquired capability for suicide is necessary for the development of suicidal behaviors. We tested the propositions of the interpersonal theory in a large sample of current United States firefighters (N=863). Participants completed self-report measures of perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness, fearlessness about death (FAD; a component of acquired capability), and career suicidal ideation and suicide attempt history. Regression models were used to examine the association between interpersonal theory constructs, career suicidal ideation severity, and the presence of career suicide attempts. In line with theory predictions, the three-way interaction between perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness, and FAD was significantly associated with career suicide attempts, beyond participant sex. However, findings were no longer significant after accounting for years of firefighter service or age. Contrary to predictions, the two-way interaction between perceived burdensomeness and thwarted belongingness was not significantly related to career suicidal ideation severity. Applications of the theory to firefighters and future research are discussed.

The mental health of fire-fighters: An examination of the impact of repeated trauma exposure.

Emergency workers, such as fire-fighters, are routinely exposed to potentially traumatic events. While a number of studies have examined the occurrence of post-traumatic stress disorder, the role of multiple traumas on other mental health sequelae, such as depression and alcohol misuse, among emergency workers remains unclear. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and alcohol misuse in a sample of current and retired fire-fighters and examine their relationship with cumulative trauma exposure. A cross-sectional survey was completed by current (n = 488) and retired (n = 265) fire-fighters from Fire and Rescue New South Wales, Australia. Demographic and occupational information was collected, including the number of fatal incidents fire-fighters reported attending across years of service. Validated, self-report measures were used to determine probable caseness for post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and heavy drinking. Among current fire-fighters, rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and depression were 8% and 5%, respectively, while 4% reported consumption of more than 42 alcoholic drinks per week. Retired fire-fighters reported significantly greater levels of symptomatology, with the prevalence estimates of post-traumatic stress disorder at 18% (p = 0.001), depression at 18% (p < 0.001) and heavy drinking at 7%. There was a significant positive linear relationship between the number of fatal incidents attended and rates of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and heavy drinking. Fire-fighters suffer from high rates of mental disorders, with rates of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and heavy drinking continuing to rise in a linear manner with each additional trauma exposure. The level of psychiatric morbidity among retired fire-fighters appears to be particularly high. Our findings have important implications for the ongoing debates surrounding the detection of mental disorders in high-risk occupations and for policy considerations around the welfare of current and retired emergency workers.

A review of garment ventilation strategies for structural firefighter protective clothing

The purpose of this review article is to evaluate ventilation, within protective clothing, for its benefit towards heat loss. Literature from ventilation studies in the sports apparel, outdoor clothing, military, chemical, and firefighter protection industries will be examined for future research opportunities. Challenges to ventilation such as garment placement, protection, wearability, and durability will be discussed in the context of turnout suits. Ventilation designs will be considered for further evaluation in structural firefighter turnout garments. This article serves as the first comprehensive review of ventilation literature for structural firefighter turnout ensembles. Researchers, technologists, and functional apparel designers may all benefit from such a review. The value of ventilation and its potential contribution to current firefighter turnout research will be discussed.

중요 건축물의 비상전원설비 용량 현황 분석에 관한 연구 - 대구광역시를 중심으로 -

Currently the climate change and other environmental problems due to the global warming go beyond the simple dimension and change the paradigm of life. The problem is that the abnormal climate phenomena will most likely occur more frequently in the future. So it will happen the unexpected emergency many times. Highly integrated urban area will be devastated if energy supply is in the hamper. Ensure the proper ratio of the emergency power system are reviewed to provide a basis for the energy security and system foundation in emergencies. This study investigates the principal building which will be considered relatively important in case of power cut to cities and analyzes the current architectural and fire fighting laws in relation to emergency power system. This is intended to set the appropriate emergency power system capacity according to the principal building energy consumption pattern. We calculated the demand factor to analyze the power consumption and emergency power system capacity achieved from the investigation sites. We don't have any exclusive criteria for power facilities right now. However, we think it is necessary to set the appropriated criteria though we consider the office building total demand factor ranges from 32 to 60%.

Sizing firefighters: method and implications.

This article reports new anthropometric information of U.S. firefighters for fire apparatus design applications (Study 1) and presents a data method to assist in firefighter anthropometric data usage for research-to-practice propositions (Study 2). Up-to-date anthropometric information of the U.S. firefighter population is needed for updating ergonomic and safety specifications for fire apparatus. A stratified sampling plan of three-age by three-race/ethnicity combinations was used to collect anthropometric data of 863 male and 88 female firefighters across the U.S. regions; 71 anthropometric dimensions were measured (Study I). Differences among original, weighted, and normality transformed data from Study 1 were compared to allowable observer errors (Study 2). On average, male firefighters were 9.8 kg heavier and female firefighters were 29 mm taller than their counterparts in the general U.S. population. They also have larger upper-body builds than those of the general U.S. population. The data in weighted, unweighted, and normality transformed modes were compatible among each other with a few exceptions. The data obtained in this study provide the first available U.S. national firefighter anthropometric information for fire apparatus designs. The data represent the demographic characteristics of the current firefighter population and, except for a few dimensions, can be directly employed into fire apparatus design applications without major weighting or nonnormality concerns. The up-to-date firefighter anthropometric data and data method will benefit the design of future fire apparatus and protective equipment, such as seats, body restraints, cabs, gloves, and bunker gear.

Efficient Rescue and Position Scheme Based on CC2431

Analysis of the current fire fighting and rescue combat communications, through the support of the the ZIGBEE positioning technology, to solve the positioning of the combatant command of fire fighting and rescue scene, a state of war, as well as communications and command platform, to achieve a scientific and effective arrangements for police to protect the officers and men of life security, improve the efficiency of fire fighting and rescue.

A Concept for Support of Firefighter Frontline Communication

In an indoor firefighter mission, coordination and communication support are of the utmost importance. We present our experience from over five years of research with current firefighter support technology. In contrast to some large scale emergency response research, our work is focused on the frontline interaction between teams of firefighters and the incident commander on a single site. In this paper we investigate the flaws in firefighter communication systems. Frequent technical failures and the high cognitive costs incurred by communicating impede coordination. We then extract a list of requirements for an assistant emergency management technology from expert interviews. Thirdly, we provide a system concept and explore challenges for building a novel firefighter support system based on our previous work. The system has three key features: robust ad-hoc network, telemetry and text messaging, as well as implicit interaction. The result would provide a complementary mode of communication in addition to the current trunked radio.

Up-Scaling and Optimisation of Fire Fighting Ground Vehicle Track System

Current UTeMs fire fighting machine is developed to operate indoor only. It is not efficient when it is operating on rocky surfaces (outdoor) as it faces the problem of shock and vibration reduction. The track system of the machine cannot move smoothly because the rollers are fixed to the chassis. This paper describes the method of up-scaling and optimising the track system for the current fire fighting machine. The new track system concept is firstly developed by using Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) software. Subsequently a prototype is built to validate the functionality of the new track system which is more efficient in absorbing the vibration and shock. Analysis and optimisation of the prototype is performed using CAD method with the CATIA V5 R16 software.

PCDD, PCDF, and PCB exposure in current and former firefighters from Eastern Siberia

The current study examines whether the occupation of firefighting contributes to exposure to polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). We compared serum dioxin concentrations and congener profiles of current firefighters (n=13) with those of men who have ceased employment as firefighters (n=17) and with men employed in occupations other than firefighter (n=10). We found that compared to former or non-firefighters, current firefighters have higher levels of dioxins primarily due to the contribution of PCBs and to a lesser extent PCDFs. PCDFs were significantly higher in former firefighters compared to non-firefighters (p<0.05). Comparisons with studies performed by other investigators suggest that local environmental conditions contribute to some of the elevation of PCBs. The congeners 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-heptachlorodibenzodioxin and PCB-114 were significantly higher in current firefighters when compared to former or non-firefighters. Moreover, levels of these congeners were inversely correlated with years since employed as firefighter (Spearman r=−0.610, p=0.009 and Spearman r=−0.53, p=0.03, respectively). The classes of dioxins show an overall decline with years since employed as firefighters, this decline is most evident with PCDDs (Spearman r=−0.46, p=0.06). Together, the combination of evidence supports firefighting as a source of exposure to dioxins.

Feasibility Study of Rotorcraft Fire Fighting for High-Rise Buildings

Fire risk in high-rise buildings is of special concern to the fire community, since it is crucial but still technically extremely challenging to significantly improve the current fire fighting capabilities when a calamity happens above the seven story limit. In fact, at the moment, there is a lack of effective means for fire fighting in this rare but potentially deadly and costly accidents. To address this problem, in this work we provide a preliminary exploration of a new concept for fire suppression: the use of rotorcraft vehicles for aerial fire fighting in high-rise buildings. If available, such system could effectively support fire fighting efforts conducted with conventional means; moreover, it could provide for one of the very few alternatives to classic systems in certain critical cases such as postearthquake fires. At first, we analyze the operative context with the help of a few reference realistic scenarios which allow for the estimation of some key physical parameters. Next, we evaluate two alternative fire extinguishing technologies, and we identify in the water impulse cannon the solution which seems to be the most effective and compatible with the use on-board a rotorcraft for the scopes considered in this work. The analysis leads us to the identification of a target vehicle as a possible candidate platform for the development of a fire fighting helicopter. Finally, we propose a preliminary design of the fire fighting kit, and we evaluate the handling qualities of the vehicle during operations with reference to the ADS-33 normative.