Heat Related Injuries

It is not yet near as hot as it was last year at this time, but that doesn’t mean that you’re not experiencing heat related injuries and sometimes LODDs.  From July 2011 to July 2012 you reported 41 heat related injuries.  These injuries are most often occurring during Fire Suppression and Skills Training activities - two areas where full PPE is typically worn.

Activities leading to heat related injuries - click to enlarge

Heat-related injuries include dehydration, dizziness and exhaustion:

Types of heat related injuries - click to enlarge

These injuries are occurring during overhaul, training exercises, rescue non-fire type calls, and while working fires.  All of this means you need to watch yourself and your team for signs of heat exhaustion and dehydration and you need to utilize the rehab services provided to you. 

Learn more about Heat Stress and Rehab today to stay safe (and cool!) tomorrow.

Be Safe During Training

Training tower - Copyright Paul Glazzard and licensed for reuse under the Creative Commons License.

Earlier this month we gave you some information about the reported injuries occurring during Training.  Just like Wellness/Fitness activities, Training helps you prepare for your job, with the ultimate goal of keeping you safe, but Training can also be dangerous and hard on firefighters.  It can even be deadly.  Just like on the fire ground, safety should come first during training.  Even if the training situation seems like a controlled environment, you want to train as if you don’t know what’s coming next, because many things can go wrong.  Taking training seriously (by taking measures such as having proper trainer/student ratios and having a safety officer on hand) will allow you to put what you’ve learned to work.  Being able to protect those in your community is what makes you a hero, so train safely!

Learn To Train Safety with the Below Online Resources

Error Management Starts During Training (FirefighterNation, 2011)

Reducing Injuries & Deaths Associated with Training (FirefighterNation, 2012)

The Training Safety Officer: Ensuring Safe Evolutions (Fire Engineering, 2009)

Preventative Measures:  A new report aims to reduce training-related injuries & deaths (FirefighterNation, 2009)

Learn To Train Safety with the Below TCFP Library Resources

FIREFIGHTER TRAINING FATALITIES

TRAINING SAFETY: LESSONS FOR THE FUTURE 

FIREFIGHTER LIFE SAFETY RESOURCE KIT 

FIREFIGHTER SAFETY AND SURVIVAL: THE COMPANY OFFICER`S RESPONSIBILITY 

Training Safety Standards

Referring to, and following, NFPA 1410: Standard on Training for Initial Emergency Scene Operations and NFPA 1403: Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions can help ensure that your Training scenarios are practiced safely. 

Heat Stress

Particularly worrisome here in Texas, is the heat.  Training outdoors during the summer months can lead to heat exhaustion and other heat related illnesses.  Last summer this blog focused on these types of injuries, as well as the value of a good incident rehabilitation program.  These are equally valuable during training.  Revisit that post to learn how to avoid heat related illnesses anywhere – even while training.

Has your department incurred any training injuries?

If so, could they have been avoided?

Does your department take training safety seriously?  If so, how can you tell?

Environmental Injuries - Heat Stress

It’s hot out there.  No surprise there. 

Heat Indicator courtesy of the FAA's website

Heat exhaustion comes on slowly, but heat stroke comes on fast.  Both are hard to avoid in your line of work.  And, did you know that heat stress can lead to problems like lower performance levels and slips & falls?  Heat stress is caused by high temperatures and dehydration, but they can be stopped with preparation and proper treatment as they begin. 

Quick tips for avoiding heat stress: 

• Pay attention to yourself and others.
• Know what it looks and feels like:  red and dry skin, throbbing headaches, dizziness, confusion, disorientation, delusion, irritability, nausea, swollen tongue, rapid heart rate.   
• Drink lots of cool water or cool non-alcoholic and non-caffeinated beverages.
• Take breaks and apply cool compresses to your body to regulate body temperature.

TCFP Library videos about heat stress

• HEAT, HEART, AND HEALTH
  AV07-2100  Length: 60:00  Format: DVD  Author: FETN
• HEAT: WORKING IN HOT ENVIRONMENTS
  AV05-1863  Length: 25:00  Format: DVD  Author: EMERGENCY FILM GROUP
• EMERGENCY INCIDENT REHABILITATION, PART 1 & 2
  AV06-1950  Length: 60:00  Format: DV  Author: FETN

Tips for your Rehab program

• Emergency Incident Rehabilitation (USFA) Chapter Two: Heat Stress and the Firefighter. Includes Rehab SOPs.
• Firefighter Hydration During Rehab (Fire Engineering, December 2006)
• Proper Hydration Is Not As Simple as H2O (Fire Chief, August 2001)
• Working in Hot Environments (NIOSH) 
• Firerehab.com's Heat Exhaustion webpage 

Learn more about NFPA 1584 - Standard on the Rehabilitation Process for Members During Emergency Operations and Training Exercises
The Elephant on the Fireground: Secrets of NFPA 1584-Compliant Rehab (Fire Engineering, 2008)
Contact the library if you need assistance adhering to or if you need help locating sample SOPs for rehabilitation. 


What are other departments doing?

Austin Fire Department recently obtained a rehab truck.  Check it out!

Contact the library if you’d like help writing a grant proposal to get such a van for your department.

Spread the word about being safe in the extreme heat with this humorous, and smart, video.  

Stay tuned for information on avoiding another common Environmental Injuries... 
Poison Plants