Firefighters face even deadlier risks than burning homes and flaming hillsides — cancer and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are killing them at alarming rates, new studies show. According to the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), which hosted its annual summit this week in Las Vegas, attended by Captain Tony Pighetti and Engineer Kevin Corbett with Santa Barbara City Fire, cancer is the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths in the United States — about 60 percent of career firefighters will die this way, “with their boots off,” as they call it. The rising number of casualties has been linked to noxious smoke from modern homes — newer furniture is routinely made with plastics, foams, and coatings laden with chemicals like benzene, formaldehyde, and hydrogen cyanide — and prolonged exposure to wildland fires for days at a time.
“There are just a plethora of toxic things that kill firefighters,” said Corbett, who was diagnosed with testicular cancer in March 2014 and was out for 18 months. He’s now back to full duty. He said he’s aware of four other current and retired City Fire members with cancer and counts himself lucky to have survived. “I’m in a very exclusive club and don’t want any more members.”
Smoke exposure is a recognized hazard of the job, Corbett said, but for many years the risks weren’t well understood or even talked about — guys wore their uniform pants thick with toxic chemicals around the station, and diesel-burning fire engines often idled in their closed bays. City Fire has discontinued both practices, said Corbett, and has taken a proactive approach to the issue. But more study is needed, he went on, and the IAFF is pushing for additional funding into research and outreach. Last spring, Congress introduced a bill to create a national registry of firefighters with cancer.