Airborne Contamination During Post-Fire Investigations: Hot, Warm and Cold Scenes

Details

• Personal Author:
  Fent, Kenneth W. ; Horn, Gavin P. ; Madrzykowski D ; Mayer, Alexander C. ; Neumann DL
• Description:
  Fire investigators may be occupationally exposed to many of the same compounds as the more widely studied fire suppression members of the fire service but are often tasked with working in a given exposure for longer periods ranging from hours to multiple days and may do so with limited personal protective equipment. In this study, we characterize the area air concentrations of contaminants during post-fire investigation of controlled residential fires with furnishings common to current bedroom, kitchen and living room fires in the United States. Area air sampling was conducted during different investigation phases including when investigations might be conducted immediately after fire suppression and extended out to 5 days after the fire. Airborne particulate over a wide range of dimensions, including sub-micron particles, were elevated to potentially unhealthy levels (based on air quality index) when averaged over a 60 min investigation period shortly after fire suppression with median PM2.5 levels over 100 ug/m3 (range 16-498ug/m3 ) and median peak transient concentrations of 1,090ug/m3 (range 200-23,700 ug/m3 ) during drywall removal or shoveling activities. Additionally, airborne aldehyde concentrations were elevated compared to volatile organic compounds with peak values of formaldehyde exceeding NIOSH ceiling limits during the earliest investigation periods (median 356ug/m3 range: 140-775 ug/m3 ) and occasionally 1 day post-fire when the structure was boarded up before subsequent investigation activities. These results highlight the need to protect investigators' airways from particulates when fire investigation activities are conducted as well as during post-fire reconstruction activities. Additionally, vapor protection from formaldehyde should be strongly considered at least through investigations occurring 3 days after the fire and personal formaldehyde air monitoring is recommended during investigations. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Air Pollutants, Occupational Aldehydes Environmental Exposure Environmental Monitoring Fires Formaldehyde Occupational Health Particulate Matter Personal Protective Equipment Respiratory System Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Solvents Volatile Organic Compounds

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• Keywords:
  Airborne Particulates Air Monitoring Air Sampling Airway Obstruction Author Keywords: Aldehydes Combustion Products Contaminants Controlled Environment Drywall Exposure Levels Fire Investigators Occupational Exposure Particulate Particulates Personal Protective Equipment PPE Protective Measures Risk Factors Vapors VOCs Volatile Organic Compounds

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• ISSN:
  1545-9624
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; Maryland ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 6 ; OSHA Region 9 ; Texas
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DFSE - Division of Field Studies and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  35-49
• Volume:
  19
• Issue:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20064277
• Citation:
  J Occup Environ Hyg 2022 Jan; 19(1):35-49
• Contact Point Address:
  Gavin P. Horn, Fire Safety Research Institute, Underwriters Laboratories Inc., 6200 Old Dobbin Lane, Suite 150, Columbia, MD 21045, USA
• Email:
  gavin.horn@ul.org
• CAS Registry Number:
  Formaldehyde (CAS RN 50-00-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2022
• NORA Priority Area:
  Public Safety
• Performing Organization:
  University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:c7b67976757fee67046b38b8250212fc7b780ce7288fde2198c83eae077bb669ed1819b4c00c8e0f9e68fa81522318a89dae2fbf11739ae3382ea52138e71760
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/222774/cdc_222774_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 3.18 MB ]