Cyanide & Fire Chiefs
How often after a fire or response do you hear firefighters complain of headaches, dizziness or achiness? These symptoms are pretty typical after a long, strenuous physical activity, dehydration or lack of sleep. Recent research indicates, however, that these symptoms could indicate cyanide poisoning, which occurs in firefighters more often than recognized.
Early last year, a firefighter in Providence, R.I., was diagnosed with cyanide poisoning after responding to a building fire. Over a period of 16 hours, seven more firefighters were diagnosed with cyanide poisoning, including one who suffered a heart attack. It was only through a series of coincidences that emergency-room physicians checked that last firefighter for cyanide poisoning.
After the diagnoses, Providence Deputy Asst. Chief Curtis Varone turned his attention to the dangers of cyanide poisoning. He said that quite a bit of research had been done about the effects of cyanide poisoning and possible impact on firefighters, but that research isn‘t reaching the mainstream fire service.
According to Varone, blood tests aren’t done routinely for cyanide poisoning, and the nature of the chemical makes it difficult to detect. The half-life of toxic cyanide is one hour. If a firefighter is close to being toxic when he leaves the incident, within an hour his toxicity level has dropped by half. Another hour and it‘s half again. It leaves the blood quickly, but continues to cause harmul effects, Varone said.
A second problem with diagnosing cyanide poisoning is that only eight laboratories in the United States can process the proper blood tests. Rhode Island Hospital is one of those eight and it stocks cyanide antidote kits.
Varone has been tracking the link between firefighters and cyanide poisoning and its correlation with firefighter heart attacks. Cyanide affects the organs involved with respiration, the brain and the heart.
Repeated exposure to cyanide can affect the heart, Varone said. “It would be possible for someone to show cardiac arrhythmia for up to two weeks after exposure.” Varone says that we could be underestimating the rist that cyanide exposure causes heart attacks.
Awareness is the important first step to prevention, Varone said. “Wearing the [SCBA] packs goes back to staffing: how many trucks at the fire, how many crews are available so nobody has to take their packs off.” Also using longer-duration bottles allow firefighters to be protected earlier and for longer.
Varone will present more information in “Cyanide: The Tip of the Iceberg” at the Fire Department Safety Officers Association Safety Forum, Oct. 31–Nov. 2 in Orlando, Fla. For details, go to www.fdsoa.org or call 508-881-3114.
September 14th, 2007 at 1:35 pm
Janet,
Good article, however, this first thing that came to mind is how that many of the FFs were exposed if they had been wearing SCBAs. The only answer I could come up with; they weren’t. The Deputy should be paying as much attention to ensuring the FFs are wearing their PPE as he does to the effects of exposure. An SCBA on your face equals a minimal risk to a toxic atmosphere.
Scott Dornan
September 14th, 2007 at 2:29 pm
Janet,
Having the dangers of Cyanide Poisoning documented in cases such as that in Providence, RI gives credibility to what many HazMat Instructors have been preaching to the troops for some time. Wear your SCBA and perform Atmospheric Monitoring of the structure until it can be determined to be safe to operate without an SCBA; and even then continue to monitor while personnel are working with the slightest chance of an exposure to the cyanide or other gases given off during the fire. There are too many chemicals and plastics in present day structures to honestly believe just putting a fan in a doorway and blowing air in is going to protect anyone other than those that did not respond. It is time for firefighters at all levels to wake up to the dangers of products breaking down during combustion and off-gasing who-knows-what; it is not all about the hoseline anymore! Be Safe and Everyone Goes Home!
Byron Kilpatrick
September 14th, 2007 at 8:09 pm
Hi Janet,
This is very timely since a few of my co-workers and I have been discussing ways we can minimize our exposure to these toxic gases. We know that CO is only one of many highly toxic products of combustion found at fires. We also know that hydrogen cyanide is 35 times more toxic than carbon monoxide.
Since we don‘t monitor for hydrogen cyanide, how do we know whether or not it‘s present? Therefore, I‘ve made a decision to wear my mask more than I ever have; even during overhaul. I know it‘s a pain to continue wearing your mask after a good job, but the alternative can be much worse.
Additionally, we should be thinking more about total decontamination after fires. We need to decon our turnouts, masks, hoods, helmet liners, uniforms, and bodies after being contaminated at a fire. I know it sounds a little like hazmat, but maybe that‘s how we should start treating it.
Paul J. Urbano, Captain
Anchorage (Alaska) Fire Department
September 15th, 2007 at 10:58 am
I’m very pleased to see articles like this informing all those who risk their lives on every incident. There are many unknown reasons why we responders died at an early age from health problems. Maybe the studies on cyanide is the factor that can help us stay healthy after we leave the job. The young responders today are much more aware of the need to protect themselves from harm and have a much better chance of enjoying a long and healthy retirement. To them I say keep wearing ALL your protective gear on EVERY incident so they can enjoy life after retireing.
September 16th, 2007 at 11:49 pm
Actually Curt Varone emphasized that wearing SCBAs earlier at an incident and longer might help.
It makes sense that if over 50% of firefighters (and officers!) are dying from heart attacks, there could be some other risk besides stress and diet that is causing firefighter deaths and if wearing SCBAs and proactive, decon of turnout gear might help, then it’s worth the time and effort.
janet w.
September 17th, 2007 at 11:44 am
I agree with Capt Urbano’s comments, maybe we should all be be doing this organization wide?
What does it take to test routinely and treat for exposure to hydrogen cyanide, is it that costly and complex?
Thanks
Brian Klugh
Battalion Chief
Lancaster, PA. Bureau of Fire
September 18th, 2007 at 8:50 am
Before the conversation gets too far along, I would like to give Chief Varone some well deserved “props” as one Executive Fire Officer Program graduate to another. Chief Varone is the only four-time winner of the Outstanding Applied Research Project Award presented each year by the National Fire Academy. I’ve studied his stuff and have employed the knowledge gained many times over my career. Anyone who reads his stuff, which is available on-line from the Learning Resource Center at NFA, will quickly appreciate that Chief Varone is a HUGE proponent of firefighter safety and PERSONAL accountability for safety.
I think the approach for addressing this particular firefighter safety issue proposed by Chief Varone is one that firmly grounded in the principles all EFOP participants learn early in the program: accurately define the problem, research the available information from a wide variety of sources, and develop solutions that are based on the research and available information. We must continually get better at basing our decisions on research and data analysis rather than the old, “I think, I feel, or I believe” methodology that many times focuses on the behavior, or perceived behavior of the individual, rather than on a systematic approach grounded in facts.
Bob Avsec, EFOP 2001
September 18th, 2007 at 4:14 pm
I think that the information provided thus far from all participants really end up in the same place. We provide respiratory protection for the firefighters and it is trully the best defense for the overall health of the firefighter. There are simply too many by-products associated with a house fire to take the chance on trying to monitor for all hazards. We already check oxygen, LEL,and CO levels while present at a house fire. We simply cannot monitor for all hazards that may be presumed harmful. We need to do a better job with procedures and training and enforcing the use of breathing apparatus on house fires.
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