OLYMPIA, WA - A fire captain who dedicated his life to helping others is in need of help himself. It's one battle Olympia Fire Department Capt. Jim Brown never thought he'd have to fight and a tragic consequence of the job he's loved for so long. For more than two decades, Brown has been fighting to save lives. Though he knew risks were attached to every call, he had no idea his biggest battle was yet to come. “When I got started in this business, I never thought cancer was going to be something that would affect me,” said Brown.
Click on the link to see more including a video interview with Captain Brown
On July 14, 2016 Seattle Fire and IAFF Local 27 celebrated with a ribbon cutting the grand opening of their own Occupational Health Center.
We're pleased to announce the opening of the new Seattle Fire Fighters Healthcare Clinic at Station 2 in Belltown.
This dedicated fire fighter health clinic will ensure that fire fighters receive healthcare commensurate with the risks, hazards, exposures, and expectations that we face on a daily basis. Thank you to the long list of dedication people who helped make this dream a success!
Understand your cancer risk, know the exposures to carcinogens on the job and reduce your risk of occupational cancer with the new IAFF fire fighter cancer awareness and prevention training course.
This new resource, developed in conjunction with the Fire Fighter Cancer Support Network, is designed to help members avoid and decrease individual risk factors for cancer.
In addition to understanding why fire fighters are at increased risk of cancer, this new training will:
Describe the most prominent types of cancer that affect fire fighters
Identify the top carcinogens in the fire fighting environment
Review the major routes of exposure to carcinogens for fire fighters
Encourage behavior changes that can reduce the risk of developing cancer
More than two dozen firefighters filled the House gallery today as the House debatedHB 554, Rep. Luke Malek’s bill to change Idaho’s worker’s compensation law to presume that certain cancers, within certain time periods, are job-related for firefighters.
Scientists believe they have discovered a way to "steer" the immune system to kill cancers.
They have developed a method, reported in Science journal, for finding unique markings within a tumour - its "Achilles heel" - that the immune system can target.
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/scientists-find-cancers-achilles-heel/ar-BBqjiXn.
Fire investigator found deadlier dangers after quitting police
Les McPhee began his career as a police detective, but after too many close encounters with criminals wielding weapons, he quit to become an investigator for the Ontario Fire Marshal's Office. For the next 24 years, he sifted through the smoldering rubble of 3,000 fires across Eastern Ontario looking for clues.
The company officer sets the stage for how firefighters use and clean their PPE to protect themselves from occupational cancers
FIRE OFFICER SAFETY
by Robert Avsec
Sponsored by Globe
http://www.firerescue1.
Given the time spent by responders in these environments every day, the lack of complete and
verifiable data on post-fire hazards is in itself, a serious issue. Given the natural inclination of personnel to doff PPE at the earliest opportunity, every structure fire, car fire, or other incendiary incident creates an unknown health risk to emergency responders.
When it comes to testing firefighter turnouts for contamination, which we outlined in part one, there are also limitations of the sampling itself. Testing turnout gear for contamination levels involves taking small samples from selected areas of the garment. These samples generally measure around 6" x 6" square.
By Jeffrey O. and Grace G. Stull
July 13, 2011
"When toxic flame retardants burn — and they do burn — it creates a serious health risk for firefighters," Harold Schaitberger, the IAFF's general president, said. "There is significant scientific data that shows the association between firefighting, exposure to deadly toxins and cancer."
by FireRescue1 Staff
April 1, 2015
need of help himself. It's one battle Olympia Fire Department Capt. Jim Brown never thought he'd have to fight and a tragic consequence of the job he's loved for so long. For more than two decades, Brown has been 
evaluation_of_hazards_in_the_post-fire_environment.pdf
