The fire service has a long history of resisting change, and it’s one of the reasons we frequently hear the old refrain, “200 years of tradition unimpeded by progress.” However, it’s not true anymore, and it's time to retire that worn-out phrase.
Changes in the fire service have been slow to evolve. Still, changes have escalated to a rapid pace since the turn of this century, particularly focused on firefighter health and safety.
In the early 1970s, FDNY firefighter Dennis Smith, founder of Firehouse magazine, testified before the President’s National Commission on Fire Prevention and Control. Among his concerns for the fire service was “…the most pressing need is medical research.”
So, 50 years ago, the need for medical research on firemen (previous term) was recognized. Obviously, things couldn’t change overnight, but slowly—too slowly—changes came about, usually after a fatality or severe injuries.
There was always pushback against any changes because “firemen were tough” (maybe macho?), like riding on a rig’s back step. Yet, in the early 80s, enclosed cabs underwent rapid design changes following a lawsuit for a Massachusetts fireman who fell out of a fire truck and the fire truck manufacturer ultimately went out of business.
The introduction of seatbelts to save firefighters (terminology changed) lives was another challenging, controversial issue. Research from Fire Chief Gordon Routely and Appartus Architect authors Tom Shand and Mike Wilbur was well done, but endless arguments and resistance were fought over why firefighters should wear seatbelts. Unfortunately, firefighters still die from not wearing seatbelts.
In 2004, the U.S. fire service's focus on firefighter health—physical and mental—finally got serious.
Spurred by the increases in line-of-duty-deaths (LODDs), in March 2004, the National Fallen Firefighters Association invited 200 of the fire service and industry leaders to a Firefighter Life Safety Summit in Tampa, FL. The summit was held to focus on reducing preventable firefighter LODDs and injuries. The hard work and efforts of the summit attendees eventually resulted in the creation of the 16 Life Safety Initiatives. I believe it was the beginning of significant changes to improve firefighters’ health and safety, a rebirth or modernization of the nation’s fire service.
Every year, as we begin to search for topics and speakers for the next Station Design Conference, we look back to earlier conferences and see the progress in protecting the health and safety of the men and women responding to incidents. The changes to fire station designs reflect increased concern for firefighter health and safety, as evidenced in the progression of programs offered each year.
We recently began research for new presentation topics for the 2026 Station Design Conference. We contacted progressive fire service leaders and reviewed research journals for trends and innovations. We see that the fire service is on a trajectory that was inconceivable in March 2004 at the Firefighter Life Safety Summit.
Among the presentation topics we’re looking at is one by Steve Benowitz, University of Arizona, Health Sciences Office of Communications. He wrote, “Researchers at the University of Arizona's Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health found that certain kinds of long-lasting chemicals firefighters are exposed to may affect the activity of genes linked to cancer and other diseases.“
Benowitz references an article published in the Environmental Research journal, which provides evidence of how PFAS, often called “forever chemicals,” correspond to epigenetic changes that can lead to cancers, neurological disorders, and autoimmune conditions.
Forever chemicals, or PFAS, are frequently in the news and reported to be found in nearly everything these days. However, the research indicates firefighters have a significant risk of these invisible body invaders, which increases the risk of cancer. Could there be a preventive answer for future fire station designs? Maybe, but could we have conceived the idea of reducing cancer-causing carcinogens with Hot Zone station designs in 2004?
Looking at recent Station Design Award entries, some fire departments offer immunizations and blood pressure checks and have designed space for a clinic in their stations. Taking it one step further, a soon-to-be-built fire station will have an adjacent urgent care clinic, which will be subcontracted out.
Another topic for the next year's conference is the fire service use of drones in emergency and non-emergency situations. One Colorado fire chief shared that his new fire station will have a drone base on top of it, anticipating increased use of drones.
The chief explained that drones can be used to deliver blood and supplies to emergency medical incidents on highways or in hard-to-reach areas. He also anticipates drones will be used to transport crash victims. Besides the initial use of drones at incidents and the infrared technology, advances in drone technology will make them integral to fire and law enforcement.
It was 1736 when Ben Franklin officially started the U.S. fire service with the first volunteer fire company in Philadelphia. So, that makes the national fire service 289 years old. I propose that the official rebirth of the firefighter-centric fire service began in 2004 at the National Firefighter Life Safety Summit. To update, it’s “The previous 263 years of tradition were unimpeded by progress.”
