SFRS £3.2m investment delivers thousands of extra kits to Scottish firefighters
Firefighters across Scotland are receiving extra sets of personal protective equipment (PPE) to help shield them from the potential harm of fire contaminants.
This investment in PPE is part of an overall £3.2 million pounds commitment by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) which has been allocated to new solutions aimed at protecting firefighters from fire contaminants.
More than 2,000 extra sets of PPE are now being rolled out across Scotland, at a cost of £1.4 million, and this includes tunics, trousers, gloves and fire hoods. These extra kits will be held in approximately 35 designated reserve stock hubs where they can be requested and accessed by firefighters when required.
The remainder of the £3.2 million budget will enable the implementation of further cleaning and storage solutions at fire stations.
SFRS Assistant Chief Officer, Craig McGoldrick said: “The extra PPE will assist crews when they require to send contaminated kit for laundry after attending incidents where fire contaminants have been present.
“Firefighter health is a priority for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, and we will continue to work with the Fire Brigades Union to ensure we do everything we can to keep our staff safe.”
SFRS is improving cleaning processes from the moment firefighters leave the incident ground to their arrival back at the fire station, where zones have been set up to prevent spread of contaminants and crews are urged to shower within an hour on their return to the station.
Firefighters will be trained to follow new processes for ensuring contaminated kit is sent to laundry, with fresh kit available to order through the reserve stocks.
To accommodate increased stocks of PPE, the funding will also allow for the provision of airing racks, PPE storage solutions, decontamination products and increased laundry costs.
The new processes were trialled in Inverness as well as throughout all fire stations in Ayrshire, with the trial’s aim to minimise the risks to firefighters who could become exposed to potentially harmful fire contaminants.
This investment from the SFRS follows extensive work from the Service who have been working alongside the Fire Brigades Union (FBU).
FBU Regional Secretary for Scotland John McKenzie said: “We welcome this commitment, and we acknowledge the work involved and the scale of investment. The FBU is committed to continuing to work in partnership with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and we welcome the organisation’s ongoing commitment to address the risks of fire contaminants to our members.”
Research shows that firefighters’ mortality rate from all cancers is 1.6 times higher than the general public, and firefighters are developing cancer at higher rates and at younger ages. *
*Scottish Firefighters Occupational Cancer and Disease Mortality Rates: 2000-2020: academic.oup.com/occmed/article/73/1/42/6964909?login=false