The team in Colerain Township was taking a proactive approach they said after a study still ongoing by the National Institute of Safety and Health, or NIOSH as it's known, found when fires burn it's a health hazard to firefighters, in a big way.
People know the danger as fire destroys a burning building. Now people are learning more about the danger that it also brings to those who put those fires out. Asst. Fire Chief for Colerain Fire and EMS, Allen Walls, said, “If you look at statistics there's an increased risk of one and a half to two and a half times that of the normal population as far as specific or different types of cancer.”
So to combat that Assistant Fire Chief Walls joined the ranks of just a few in the country to try and double protect his firefighters and paramedics against it.
Justin Boyce, a firefighter and paramedic for Coleraine Township, said, “After every fire we try to wash our gear.”
For years firefighters such as Boyce have gone through a decontamination process when they return to the station. Now, rather than waiting, they will first have the chance to do much of that same thing while on scene.