1. Firefighter Fatalities in the United States

2. Who is a firefighter?  State and local fire service personnel, career and volunteer  State or local public service officer, acting as firefighter  Federal government fire service personnel  Temporary fire suppression personnel operating under official auspices of one of the above  Privately employed firefighters

3. How is “on-duty” defined?  At scene of alarms, whether fire or non-fire  En route responding to or returning from alarms  Performing other duties, including training, maintenance, public education, inspection, investigation, etc.  Performing non-fire duties on official assignment  Station duty

4. What is counted as an on-duty fatality?  Any injury that was incurred while on duty and proves fatal  Any illness that was incurred as a result of actions while on duty and proves fatal

5. Off-Duty, Retired and Former Firefighters Defining the U.S. Firefighter Death Problem On-Duty Firefighters

6.  53 volunteer firefighters  42 career firefighters  6 employees of federal or state land management agencies  1 contractors to a federal land management agency  1 member of an industrial fire brigade 103 On-Duty Fatalities in 2007

7. Career and Volunteer Firefighter On-Duty Deaths 1977 - 2007* Number of Deaths * excluding the 340 firefighter deaths at the World Trade Center

8. 2007 Firefighter Deaths by Type of Duty

9. 2007 Career Firefighter Deaths by Type of Duty

10. Training deaths:  Physical fitness activities (2 deaths)  Driving back from training (2 deaths)  Live fire training exercise (1 death)  Equipment drill - power saw (1 death)  At seminar (1 death)

12. 2007 Career Firefighter Deaths by Cause of Injury

14. 2007 Career Firefighter Deaths by Nature of Injury

16. Career Firefighter Deaths by Type of Duty

17. Structures 92% Vehicles 3% Refuse 1% Wildland 4% Career Firefighter Deaths by Type of Duty and Incident Type

18. Structure Fire Deaths by Fixed Property Use Career Only

19. Structure Fire Deaths by Fixed Property Use Career Only Vol – 8.5% Vol – 11.5% Vol – 5.2% Vol – 4.9% Vol – 63.0% Vol – 5.9%

20. CauseInsideOutside On Roof On LadderTotal Structural collapse Exertion/stress/other medical Fire progress Lost inside Struck by object/vehicle Explosion Fell in hole burned in floor/roof Fell/jumped from structure Other falls Electrocution Smoke exposure (all no SCBA) Gunshot Aerial collapse Other/no details Total 64 31 48 41 6 2 5 3 4 3 4 211 11 35 4 5 2 59 3411934119 213213 78 70 48 41 10 7 6 4 3 2 1 4 282 Causes of Fatal Injuries at Structure Fires

22. Patterns for Career Firefighter Deaths at Structure Fires

23. Major Causes of Non-Cardiac Deaths Inside Structures

24. The average number of career firefighter deaths annually has dropped by more than half On-duty sudden cardiac deaths have dropped by more than one third, but remain the #1 cause of on-duty firefighter deaths Half of all career firefighter deaths occur on the fire ground Snapshot

25.  Real progress has been made in reducing firefighter deaths over the past 30 years, but more can be done  Sudden cardiac death continues to be the major problem  Advocates for the development of a safety culture in the fire service Progress??

26. What Recent Actions Have Been Taken? NFFF Fire Fighter Life Safety Summit  Initiated March 2004 with over 200 participants  Purpose – to produce an agenda of initiatives & gain commitment of the Fire Service  Objectives set for reduction 25% within 5 years 50% within 10 years  Sixteen initiatives were put forward

27. Initiatives  Need for a cultural change within the fire service  Enhance the personal and organizational accountability  Focus greater attention on risk management.  Empower all to stop unsafe practices.  Implement national standards for training, qualifications and certification.  Implement national medical and physical fitness standards.  Create a national research agenda and data collection system

28. Initiatives  Utilize available technology to produce higher levels of health and safety.  Investigate all firefighter fatalities, injuries, and near misses.  Grant programs should support safety  National standards for emergency response policies and procedures.  National protocols for response to violent incidents.  Firefighters and their families must have access to counseling

29. Initiatives  Public education must receive more resources and be championed.  Advocacy must be strengthened for codes and home sprinklers.  Safety must be a primary consideration in the design of apparatus and equipment.

30. Outgrowths & Efforts  The Seat Belt initiative and pledge  IAFC/IAFF Wellness& Fitness Initiative Annual Physicals Physical Fitness Wellness – Physical and Mental  NFPA Standards revisions  Tech changes – bio feedback, tracking of FFs  NIMS and other IMS training  Low hanging Fruit Responding/Returning Fitness for Duty The End