Jonathan Glover, The Spokesman-Review:
Spokane firefighters may soon breath easy again after a recent round of testing determined there are no contaminants in the department’s air tanks.
The test results, announced by the city Thursday morning at a news conference, come from health consultant companies Veritox, Inc. and TRI Air Testing, which both found no traces of toxic metals in firefighter’s self-contacted breathing apparatus (SCBA) bottles.
Further testing from Veritox determined it was unlikely that firefighter personnel were exposed to contaminants in the past.
“Basically every component of the process was able to be evaluated,” said Randy Marler, president of the Spokane Firefighters Union. “And it all came up clear. There were zero contaminants in any of the air.”
The department came under fire from Labor and Industries in early December after some bottles and two of its air compressors – used to fill air packs for the department’s 330 firefighters – were reported to contain contaminants. On Dec. 21, the agency opened an investigation, which is still pending.
Read the full story here.
Image: Holly Pickett, The Spokesman-Review