Forestry Worker Dies While Bulldozing a Fire Line at a Wildland Fire – Alabama

Details

• Personal Author:
  Baldwin, Tommy N. ; Brown, Sally E.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP)
• Description:
  Death in the Line of Duty…a Summary of a NIOSH Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation
  
  On July 6, 1998, a 50-year-old male Forestry Worker responded to a 50-acre wildland fire. After working on the scene for approximately 4 hours in 90 degree Fahrenheit heat, bulldozing fire lines around the perimeter of the fire and removing wire that was caught in the dozer tracks, the victim had a witnessed collapse. After cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and advanced life support (ALS) on the scene and at the hospital, the victim died. The death certificate, completed by the Emergency Room physician, listed "cardiac arrest" as the immediate cause of death and "respiratory failure" as the underlying cause. An autopsy performed by the State Medical Examiner listed the mechanism of death as an "acute myocardial infarction" (heart attack). Other agencies have proposed a three-pronged strategy for reducing the risk of on-duty heart attacks and cardiac arrests among fire fighters. This strategy consists of (1) minimizing physical stress on fire fighters, (2) screening to identify and subsequently rehabilitate individuals at higher risk, and (3) encouraging increased individual physical capacity. The following issues are relevant to this Agency: 1) Fire fighters should have annual medical evaluations to determine their medical ability to perform duties without presenting a significant risk to the safety and health of themselves or others
  
  2) Reduce risk factors for cardiovascular disease and improve cardiovascular capacity by phasing in a mandatory wellness/fitness program for fire fighters
  
  3) Provide portable radios with local emergency frequencies for use when operating away from a base station or mobile radio
  
  4) Provide training to staff and develop procedures regarding when and how to respond to medical emergencies.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Cardiovascular System Emergency Responders Firefighters Fires Forestry Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Cardiac Function Cardiovascular System Disease Emergency Responders Fire Fighters Fire Fighting Forestry Workers Medical Examinations Medical Screening OSHA Region 4
• FACE - Firefighter:
  Cause of Death: Medical ; Cardiovascular: Heart Attack (Myocardial Infarction, Coronary Artery Disease and Coronary Vascular Disease) ; Non-Cardiac: Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
• Series:
  Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP)
• Subseries:
  Death in the Line of Duty Report
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHFFFACEF200002
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study ; Report
• Place as Subject:
  Alabama ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-10
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20023571
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2004-100360
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE F2000-02, 2000 Oct ; :1-10
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2001
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  11 - Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  1998/07/06
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:a203e6f1fcbaa7612777912655800681696ce38b5c3800f1e2c88cc70dc169b777f611cac3b78b90ddeec4137950efd128a6af19685dc110d9f4e6e6638ccf54
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/163801/cdc_163801_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 323.45 KB ]