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Chicago Fire Department implements advanced gear cleaning to combat firefighter cancer risks
We all know that firefighting is a dangerous job. But there's a hidden danger inside all that smoke that you might not know about.
CHICAGO - We all know that firefighting is a dangerous job. But there's a hidden danger inside all that smoke that you might not know about.
"Cancer rates are significantly higher than that of the general public," said Michael Oquendo, Chief of Logistics for the Chicago Fire Department. "Last time I read it was 20 percent to 30 percent more than what the general public is susceptible to."
That's because the smoke firefighters encounter is increasingly comprised of potentially carcinogenic chemicals from petroleum products, which stick to firefighting gear even after it’s washed with water.
"Furniture is no longer made of wood. Carpet is no longer made of typical textiles," said Mark Smith of Alliance Safety Solutions. "Everything is now petroleum-based. So that petroleum base burns hotter. It burns quicker. And it has more polyaromatic hydrocarbons."
Which is where a new massive machine comes in. It’s called a high-pressure liquid carbon dioxide cleaner.
"It is very much like a laundry machine. Just uses high-pressure carbon dioxide instead of water to clean clothes," said Chris Robbins of Tersus Solutions.
The Chicago Fire Department is one of the first in the country to get one, and it will be used to hi-tech clean 4,200 sets of firefighting gear every three months.
"The traditional way of laundering is with water," said Robbins. "As with most things, that removes about 50 percent of carcinogens and bad things. The CO2 will take out about 98, 99 percent. So we're looking at much cleaner gear."
The new CO2 cleaning machines are massive, weighing 27,000 pounds, and they cost between $1.5 to $2 million apiece. So they’re not going to be in every firehouse. The first machine is being kept on Chicago’s Southwest Side at a PPE cleaning facility that contracts with the department to wash and repair uniforms.
The goal is to make the lifesaving gear safer for firefighters.
"My hope is you're gonna start to see the difference in a couple years down the line when maybe some of those cancer rates start to decrease a little bit," Oquendo said.