NFPA: Total of Firefighter Injuries Declined in 2009

Nov. 9, 2010
The NFPA said the nation also has seen a steady decline in fires during the same period.
The number of firefighter injuries declined last year, the NFPA announced Tuesday.

Read NFPA Injury Report

Statistics included in the NFPA's annual U.S. Firefighter Injuries report show 78,150 injuries were reported in 2009, a 1.9 percent decrease from the previous year.

While the news is encouraging, authors pointed out: "In recent years, the number of firefighter injuries has been considerably lower than it was in the 1980s and 1990s, but this is due in part to additional survey questions about exposures that allow us to place them in their own categories. Previously, some of these exposures might have been included in total injuries under other categories."

Most of the injuries -- 41.2 percent -- occurred during fire ground operations. However, statisticians said the number is the lowest from since 1981.

The NFPA said the nation also has seen a steady decline in fires during the same period for an overall decrease of 52.3 percent.

Investigators also estimated that there were 11,900 exposures to infectious diseases such as hepatitis, meningitis, and HIV, which they said amounts to 0.7 exposures per 1,000 emergency medical runs by fire departments.

Based on the information received, they estimated that there were 23,000 exposures to hazardous conditions such as asbestos, radioactive materials, chemicals, and fumes. Some of the key findings in the report include:

  • 32,205, or 41.2 percent, of all firefighter injuries occurred during fire ground operations. An estimated 15,455 occurred at non-fire emergencies, while 17,590 occurred during other on-duty activities.
  • The Northeast reported a higher number of fire ground injuries per 100 fires than other regions of the United States.
  • The major types of injuries received during fire ground operations were strains, sprains, and muscular pain, responsible for 48.2 percent; wounds, cuts, bleeding, and bruises, responsible for 13.2 percent; and smoke or gas inhalation, responsible for 6.2 percent. Strains, sprains, and muscular pain accounted for 58.9 percent of all non-fire ground firefighter injuries.
  • The leading causes of fire ground injuries were overexertion and strains, responsible for 25.2 percent, and falls, slips, and jumps, responsible for 22.7 percent.

The document also addresses injuries during various activities associated with firefighting.

Vehicle crashes involving both emergency and personal vehicles were examined. The NFPA estimated that last year, an estimated 15,100 collisions involved fire department emergency vehicles responding to, or returning from, incidents.

Statisticians said: "Fire departments responded to more than 26.2 million incidents in 2009, meaning that the number of collisions represents about one-tenth of 1 percent of total responses. However, these collisions resulted in 820 firefighter injuries or 1 percent of all injuries."

There also were 870 collisions involving firefighters personal vehicles responding to, or returning from, incidents in 2009. These collisions resulted in an estimated 100 injuries, according to the report.

The NFPA also discusses the need for enhanced health and safety measures to help reduce the number of firefighter injuries.

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