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11 April 2005 - Fire Service Safety
Research Suggests Lives at Risk
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A Fire Service Safety Research, commissioned after the 9/11
tragedy to the Buildings Disaster Advisory Group (BDAG), has been commented on
by the Fire Brigades Union as "the most critical fire service safety research in
50 years" and claims both Fire-fighters and the publics' health and safety are
being put at risk.
The BDAG research measured the effects on the human body of
fire-fighting in a day to day senario, such as extreme conditions in high-rise
blocks.
Some of their findings were as follows:
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It found that a mix of heavy workload and heat from fires leads
to dangerously high levels of heat exhaustion in fire-fighters even in normal
fire-fighting conditions.
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In the research trials, the core body temperatures of
fire-fighters reached such high levels that most of the tests had to be stopped.
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It shows that fire-fighters can only fight fires for between
13-16 minutes before unsafe body temperatures are reached.
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Many of the tests were cut short on health and safety grounds.
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Many fire-fighters took several hours to recover.
General Secretary of the FBU, Mr. Andy Gilchrist said:
“The research clearly shows that fire-fighting is dangerously
exhausting even for very fit individuals. We also need proper rest periods
to recover.
“This clearly suggests that more fire-fighters are needed in the first response
to fires with more needed throughout the incident.
“We need a national action plan put together by all fire
service stakeholders which must include more resources".
Further details of the research can be accessed by clicking the
following:
FBU Website
Article by Alexandra Johnston
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