The “Warm Zone” Cases: Environmental Monitoring Immediately Outside the Fire Incident Response Arena by Firefighters.
10.1016/j.shaw.2017.12.003
- Author:
Alberto J CABAN-MARTINEZ
1
;
Bob KROPA
;
Neal NIEMCZYK
;
Kevin J MOORE
;
Jeramy BAUM
;
Natasha Schaefer SOLLE
;
David A STERLING
;
Erin N KOBETZ
Author Information
1. Division of Environment and Public Health, Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA. acaban@med.miami.edu
- Publication Type:Case Report
- Keywords:
Firefighters;
Multigas detectors;
Respiratory protection;
KW -;
Warm zone
- MeSH:
Emergencies;
Environmental Monitoring*;
Firefighters*;
Fires*;
Florida;
Hazardous Substances;
Humans;
Volatile Organic Compounds
- From:Safety and Health at Work
2018;9(3):352-355
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:English
-
Abstract:
Hazardous work zones (i.e., hot, warm, and cold) are typically established by emergency response teams during hazardous materials (HAZMAT) callsbut less consistently for fire responses to segment personnel and response activities in the immediate geographic area around the fire. Despite national guidelines, studies have documented the inconsistent use of respiratory protective equipment by firefighters at the fire scene. In this case-series report, we describe warm zone gas levels using multigas detectors across five independent fire incident responses all occurring in a large South Florida fire department. Multigas detector data collected at each fire response indicate the presence of sustained levels of volatile organic compounds in the “warm zone” of each fire event. These cases suggest that firefighters should not only implement strategies for multigas detector use within the warm zone but also include respiratory protection to provide adequate safety from toxic exposures in the warm zone.
