Unity firefighter Robert Jones, 48, died of a heart attack nine years ago as he was running a water hose at the scene of a fire in his town.
Last month in Hartland, local firefighter Michael Snowman, 49, collapsed and died while hooking up a hose at a structure fire.
Snowman’s cause of death has not been officially declared a heart attack, but his commanding officer said all signs point that way.
In each case, the fatalities were middle-aged, heavy-set men engaged in an emergency situations that would place tremendous stress on anyone involved.
Ed Marks, interim director of Maine Fire Training and Education, said such tragedies happen far too often in the fire-protection profession.
"Heart attack is still the No. 1 killer of firefighters across the country," Marks said. "Over 50 percent die this way. It is a high-stress job, and not something a normal work force deals with."
National Fire Protection Association statistics show that older, volunteer firefighters are the ones must vulnerable to this killer; nationwide, of firefighters who died in 2007, heart attacks killed 37 percent. More than half of those deaths (21) occurred among volunteer firefighters; of them, nearly 81 percent were 46 or older.
Given that about 90 percent of Maine firefighters are volunteers, and that their average age is going up, fire officials fear more firefighters will die tragically in the line of duty.
"Statistically, it’s pretty obvious that if we don’t renew our firefighter forces with younger-generation firefighters, the experienced firefighters are going to suffer more," Marks said.
Fitness drive
Fire officials are well aware of the tremendous stresses inherent in their profession. They also realize the critical role good health plays in reducing the number of deaths and serious injuries to firefighters.
A national policy that firefighters best know as simply NFPA 1583 — the standard on health-related fitness programs for firefighters — was approved by the National Fire Protection Association in August 2000 to address health issues.
In its literature, the fire association states "that a health-related fitness program will contribute significantly to reducing firefighter fatalities and injuries. Overweight, out-of-shape firefighters are an accident waiting to happen. The multiple stress factors and rigors of the profession require firefighters to be medically and physically fit in order to perform the required tasks."
Lt. Joseph Thomas, Maine’s assistant fire marshal, said promoting fitness is nothing new in the fire service.
Thomas, a former Portland Fire Department chief, said a push to improve strength and conditioning goes back more than 20 years.
"The Portland department adopted a standard for fitness around the early ’80s," he said. "I think that was in response to a whole host of issues. If a community is going to support an individual’s worker’s comp caused by injuries sustained in the line of duty, then the employee has an obligation to maintain as good a health condition as possible."
For departments that employ full-time firefighters, a structured fitness program is easier to establish and maintain, Thomas said.
Waterville Fire Chief David LaFountain agrees.
He said Waterville began to phase in a fitness program about 25 years ago and today has a workout room in the station that features strength training and cardiovascular equipment.
Waterville also brings in a trainer three days a week who provides expertise and motivates the fire crew — mostly the 15 career firefighters that Waterville employs.
LaFountain said the fitness story is more mixed, with 35 call firefighters that work for Waterville.
"There is room for improvement there," he said. "We have some call men who are in great shape, more who are in fine shape and some are like me, they could use more time on the treadmill."
Volunteer struggles
Firefighters often say it’s tough to find the time to work out.
Most have full-time jobs. Balancing that work, their fire duties and responsibilities at home can be daunting.
All-volunteer departments — by far the norm in Maine — also seldom have the money and space for a fitness room at their stations.
"A lot of time volunteer departments struggle with some of the basic needs to keep firefighters safe," Maine Fire Chiefs’ Association President William St. Michel said.
St. Michel, who is fire chief in Durham, supports conditioning programs and sees the value of establishing fitness standards for the profession.
But he said doing so could create a manpower nightmare for volunteer departments.
"The volunteer service is already hurting to get enough people," he said. "If the (fitness) standards became more stringent, it might be hard to get enough people. It is something that, sooner or later, is going to come to pass.
"The impact on the volunteer fire service would be dramatic. As I said, it is a double-edged sword."
Manchester’s Alan Hewey is one of the more fortunate fire chiefs.
"We are not hurting for volunteers," he said of the 33 he oversees, "and we have a very young fighting force."
Hewey said his interior firefighters — those ones who go inside structures — are in their mid-20s.
The town of Manchester also helps Hewey promote fitness to his volunteers.
"The town pays half of the gym membership at the YMCA," Hewey said. "So it is just an incentive. If the guys want to stay fit, it helps them out a bit."
Hewey said he will have some fitness equipment available in the station by next year as well.
Still, equipment and discounts on gym memberships only go so far. Firefighters also have to make the commitment to stay in top shape. Not everyone does.
"I’d say about a quarter of them stay in good shape year-round," Hewey said.
Marks, of Maine Fire Training and Education, said he isn’t surprised by that percentage.
Most volunteers, he said, have a full-time career in another profession "and that primary profession in most cases doesn’t dictate that they be in the condition demanded of a firefighter."
Getting checked
Whatever a person’s fitness level, a physical assessment is a sure way to check the potential for a heart attack or other major health concern. But those assessments are required only of the those who use air packs. Even that standard isn’t applicable until a firefighter reaches age 30, Oakland Fire Chief David Coughlin said.
Those between 30 and 35, moreover, need to go through it only once every five years. The requirement increases to every two years for those between 35 and 40. Once a firefighters reaches 40, an annual assessment is required.
An assessment, though, is not necessarily a thorough exam by a qualified medical professional. Coughlin said in some cases it goes no further than a firefighter filling out a health-evaluation sheet. Coughlin said a doctor simply has to sign off on the form.
Waterville’s LaFountain said doctors vary in how deeply they scrutinize the information.
"I had a doctor who said, ‘If you can walk up stairs to his office,’ he’ll check you off," LaFountain said.
Marks underscored that good health is vital for those who don air packs, which often are used by firefighters inside buildings, when they’re fighting fires.
"Breathing through a mask puts more stress on a heart — it makes the heart work harder to get oxygen to the brain," he said.
Manchester Chief Hewey said he gets a doctor to review the health forms of every volunteer in his department
on an annual basis.
"If she has any concerns, she pulls them in to talk to them," he said, "and depending on what she finds and what concerns she has, she might send them to get a stress test or to their family doctor for a thorough evaluation."
Such a system, though, can fall apart before the medical professional enters the picture.
Albion Fire Chief Jerry Keay said firefighters need to take responsibility for their health. And this means they need to be honest about it — especially on the health questionnaire.
"You shouldn’t lie," he said. "You should be truthful, because you aren’t going to hurt anybody but yourself and your department and your town by lying."
