By FireRescue1 Staff
QUINCY, Mass. — 2007 saw a sharp rise in firefighter fatalities over the previous year. The 102 firefighter deaths represent a return to the approximate average of 100 firefighter deaths per year, which has been consistent since the early 1990s, according to a report in the NFPA Journal’s July/August issue.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is one of several agencies that maintains statistics about the causes of firefighter fatalities. The report, Firefighter Fatalities in the United States — 2007, is the compilation of all firefighter fatalities reported to the NFPA through the National Fire Incident Reporting System
Stress, exertion and other medical issues were the leading causes of death in 2007. 40 of the 102 fatalities were stress-related. Of those, 38 were classified as sudden cardiac deaths, according to the report.
The report analyzes the activities and types of injury associated with firefighter deaths, and breaks the fatalities down into demographics including volunteer vs. career, number of years of service and ages of firefighters.
The report also describes in detail the seven multiple-fatality incidents that occurred last year, including the Charleston, S.C. Sofa Super Store fire that killed nine firefighters. The other six incidents were each double-fatalities and included a tanker crash and a gas explosion.
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