NIOSH Corner: March 2024

Firefighters and turnout gear NFR QR code

NIOSH recently released a new advisory on how to quickly remove unresponsive firefighters from their gear, a joint alert with the U.S. Coast Guard on shipboard firefighting, several new firefighter fatality reports, and an update from its National Firefighter Registry program.

NIOSH Health and Safety Advisories

Training on rapid removal of unresponsive firefighter…

Training on the Rapid Removal of an Unresponsive Firefighter from Turnout Gear and Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus. This document educates workers in the fire service on the importance of rapidly removing an unresponsive firefighter from turnout gear and self-contained breathing apparatus and what techniques they can train on to accomplish this.

NIOSH USCG land and sea
By Land and Sea – Firefighting Preparation is Key

Joint Advisory from NIOSH and the U.S. Coast Guard, By Land and Sea – Firefighting Preparation is Key, reviews preliminary findings of investigations of shipboard firefighting techniques.

Firefighter Fatality Investigation Reports

All completed NIOSH Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program case investigation reports can be found on the program website.

New National Firefighter Registry (NFR) for Cancer YouTube Playlist

The NFR for Cancer has now enrolled over 10,000 participants! To celebrate this exciting milestone, we’re proud to announce a new NFR YouTube playlist featuring our videos. These short videos provide information about the NFR, and why all U.S. firefighters, active or retired, no matter their length of service, should enroll.

The playlist includes many compelling videos showcasing testimonials from prominent members of the fire service such as Billy Goldfeder, Rick Swan, Regina Wilson, and many more. Other video topics include how the NFR works and how we protect our participants’ personal data.

We’ll be adding more videos to our playlist in the future, so please stay tuned! More information about the NFR can be found on our communication materials page.

Hand entrapped in rope gripper

Elevator Rescue: Rope Gripper Entrapment

Mike Dragonetti discusses operating safely while around a Rope Gripper and two methods of mitigating an entrapment situation.
Delta explosion

Two Workers Killed, Another Injured in Explosion at Atlanta Delta Air Lines Facility

Two workers were killed and another seriously injured in an explosion Tuesday at a Delta Air Lines maintenance facility near the Atlanta airport.