Fire characteristics associated with firefighter injury on large federal wildland fires

Britton, Carla; Lynch, Charles F.; Torner, James; Peek‐Asa, Corinne

doi:10.1016/j.annepidem.2012.11.001

Cited by 25 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The authors identified 2 studies that examined the impact of wildland firefighting on musculoskeletal morbidity and injuries. In a high-quality ecological study, Britton et al [35] used data from the U.S. National Interagency Fire Center to determine fire characteristics associated with firefighter injury. They found that the more complex the fire, based on the peak incident management level assigned by the responding agency, the fewer injuries per 10 000 person-days were sustained: the mean rate of injury per 10 000 person-days was 3.6 (SD = 5.35) for type I fires (the most complex), 11.7 (SD = 30.1) for type II fires (moderately complex), and 15.2 (SD = 56.9) for type III fires (the least complex) (p < 0.001) [35].…”

Section: Injuries and Musculoskeletal Morbiditymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a high-quality ecological study, Britton et al [35] used data from the U.S. National Interagency Fire Center to determine fire characteristics associated with firefighter injury. They found that the more complex the fire, based on the peak incident management level assigned by the responding agency, the fewer injuries per 10 000 person-days were sustained: the mean rate of injury per 10 000 person-days was 3.6 (SD = 5.35) for type I fires (the most complex), 11.7 (SD = 30.1) for type II fires (moderately complex), and 15.2 (SD = 56.9) for type III fires (the least complex) (p < 0.001) [35]. A recent, moderate-quality cross-sectional survey of U.S. wildland firefighters found no relationship between the number of years worked as a wildland firefighter and the risk of arthritis [28].…”

Section: Injuries and Musculoskeletal Morbiditymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…responding to major disasters [19][20][21][22][23][24][25]33], rather than typical wildland fires. Given that physical injuries are more common per days worked in less complex fires [35], it is important to examine if the same relationship holds true for mental injury. Further, the baseline prevalence of mental illness is not well-described in studies investigating the mental health impact of firefighting.…”

Section: Health System Usementioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

A systematic review of the health impacts of occupational exposure to wildland fires

Groot¹,

Caturay²,

Khan³

et al. 2019

Int J Occup Med Environ Health

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The aim of the paper is to summarize the evidence of health impacts of occupational exposure to wildland fires. The authors searched 3 databases for relevant articles and screened the results. After full-text review, articles were included based on predetermined criteria. The authors identified 32 relevant articles. Occupational exposure to wildland fires affects lung function in the short term and may increase the risk of hypertension in the long term. Exposure to wildland fires is also associated with post-traumatic stress symptoms. There was insufficient evidence to comment on most longer-term risks, and in particular on respiratory disease or cancer risks. Further research is required to understand whether occupational exposure to wildland fires results in clinically significant impacts on respiratory function, and to further clarify the relationship between occupational exposure and blood pressure, mental health, and cancer outcomes.

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Section: Injuries and Musculoskeletal Morbiditymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Injuries and Musculoskeletal Morbiditymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Health System Usementioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

A systematic review of the health impacts of occupational exposure to wildland fires

Groot¹,

Caturay²,

Khan³

et al. 2019

Int J Occup Med Environ Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…It is worth noting that firefighter injuries and deaths can also occur directly as part of the fire suppression operations itself (Britton et al 2013a(Britton et al , 2013bCook 2013), irrespective of whether MPB-induced tree mortality is involved. This can result from aircraft (i.e., mechanical failure, rotor downwash and wing-tip vortices), ground-based vehicles (e.g., bulldozer, fire engine, and tractor/plow unit), and hand tools or chainsaws that are involved in containing and/or extinguishing the fire (Teie 2005).…”

Section: Firefighter Safety Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additionally, higher numbers of firefighters and longer duration fires may lead to increases in the likelihood and number of injuries. Britton et al (2013b), for example, found that on large wildfires in the U.S. that the number of person-days of exposure was the best predictor of the occurrence of injuries.…”

Section: Implications For Fire Research and Fire Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wildfire’s resistance to control in mountain pine beetle-attacked lodgepole pine forests

Page

Alexander

Jenkins

2013

The Forestry Chronicle

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Concerns about the impacts of mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins)-caused tree mortality on wildfire potential in lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta Dougl. var. latifolia Engelm.) forests have to date largely focused on the potential for extreme fire behaviour, including the development and spread of crown fires. Given that the wildland fire environment in which fire managers and firefighters work is composed of many interacting physical and human factors, viewing crown fire behaviour as the only or even the most important outcome of the tree mortality associated with a mountain pine beetle outbreak is questionable. Proper assessment of wildfire potential entails a broader approach, which requires expanding the concept of wildfire resistance to control to include an analysis of all relevant factors and their interactions. In this paper we describe a holistic concept of analyzing the impacts of mountain pine beetle-caused tree mortality on wildfire potential in lodgepole pine forests on the basis of fire behaviour characteristics, fire suppression operations, and firefighter safety considerations within the framework of three recognizable stages of the approximate time since the initiation of an outbreak (i.e., "red" ~1 to 5 years, "gray" ~5 to 15 years, and post-epidemic ~15+ years).Key words: fire behaviour, fire hazard, fire suppression, firefighter safety, forest fuels, tree mortality. résuméLes inquiétudes rattachées aux effets de la mortalité des arbres causée par le dendroctone du pin (Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins) sur les feux de forêts au sein des peuplements de pin lodgepole (Pinus contorta Dougl. var. latifolia Engelm.) ont principalement porté à ce jour sur la possibilité d' observer un comportement extrême des feux, incluant le développement et la propagation des feux de cimes. Étant donné que l' environnement des feux de forêts dans lequel travaillent les gestionnaires et les pompiers forestiers est composé de plusieurs facteurs physiques et humains en interaction, considérer le comportement des feux de cimes comme étant la seule ou encore la plus importante conséquence de la mortalité des arbres associée à l' épidémie de dendroctone du pin peut être discutable. L' évaluation adéquate du potentiel d'inflammabilité implique une approche plus globale, ce qui nécessite d' élargir le concept de résistance des feux de forêt au contrôle pour y inclure une analyse de tous les facteurs pertinents et de leurs interactions. Dans cet article, nous décrivons un concept holistique d'analyse des impacts de la mortalité des arbres causée par le dendroctone du pin sur l'inflammabilité des peuplements de pin lodgepole en se basant sur les caractéristiques du comportement du feu, les opérations de suppression du feu et les aspects de sécurité des pompiers dans le cadre de trois niveaux identifiables de temps approximativement écoulé depuis le début d'une épidémie (c' est-à-dire, « rouge » ~1 à 5 ans, « gris » ~5 à 15 ans et post-épidémie ~15+ ans).Mots clés : comportement du feu, risque de fe...

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An Overview of Occupational Risks From Climate Change

Applebaum

Graham

Gray

et al. 2016

Curr Envir Health Rpt

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Changes in atmosphere and temperature are affecting multiple environmental indicators from extreme heat events to global air quality. Workers will be uniquely affected by climate change, and the occupational impacts of major shifts in atmospheric and weather conditions need greater attention. Climate change-related exposures most likely to differentially affect workers in the USA and globally include heat, ozone, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, other chemicals, pathogenic microorganisms, vector-borne diseases, violence, and wildfires. Epidemiologic evidence documents a U-, J-, or V-shaped relationship between temperature and mortality. Whereas heat-related morbidity and mortality risks are most evident in agriculture, many other outdoor occupational sectors are also at risk, including construction, transportation, landscaping, firefighting, and other emergency response operations. The toxicity of chemicals change under hyperthermic conditions, particularly for pesticides and ozone. Combined with climate-related changes in chemical transport and distribution, these interactions represent unique health risks specifically to workers. Links between heat and interpersonal conflict including violence require attention because they pose threats to the safety of emergency medicine, peacekeeping and humanitarian relief, and public safety professionals. Recommendations for anticipating how US workers will be most susceptible to climate change include formal monitoring systems for agricultural workers; modeling scenarios focusing on occupational impacts of extreme climate events including floods, wildfires, and chemical spills; and national research agenda setting focusing on control and mitigation of occupational susceptibility to climate change.

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Fire characteristics associated with firefighter injury on large federal wildland fires

Cited by 25 publications

References 16 publications

A systematic review of the health impacts of occupational exposure to wildland fires

A systematic review of the health impacts of occupational exposure to wildland fires

Wildfire’s resistance to control in mountain pine beetle-attacked lodgepole pine forests

An Overview of Occupational Risks From Climate Change

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