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Heroes get hoods to protect them from cancer

By Nick Blank
Posted 11/20/18

FLEMING ISLAND – The dangers facing firefighters doesn’t end when the fire is extinguished. Carcinogens released from synthetic building materials stick to their equipment and smoke penetrates …

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Heroes get hoods to protect them from cancer


Posted

FLEMING ISLAND – The dangers facing firefighters doesn’t end when the fire is extinguished. Carcinogens released from synthetic building materials stick to their equipment and smoke penetrates the skin. It’s tough to wash off carcinogens that, if a firefighter is exposed to, can potentially result in severe long-term consequences.

About one in three firefighters, and there about 1.2 million firefighters across the country, will have cancer in their lifetime because of a lack of proper hoods and other equipment. Clay County’s Hoods For Heroes is trying to change that.

On Nov. 17, Hoods For Heroes celebrated a partnership with Cancer Specialists of Northeast Florida to provide 550 protective hoods for firefighters in Clay County Fire Rescue, Middleburg, Orange Park and St. Johns County.

Hoods For Heroes co-founders Jeff Rountree and Bill Hamilton discovered the cause a few years ago, started a nonprofit and have seen requests for the $125 hoods soar in the past year.

“When there’s a fire, and people are running away, firefighters don’t care what race you are, who you voted for or what football team you like,” Rountree said. “They don’t ask those questions. They kick your door in, and if you’re unconscious, they’re going to grab you and carry you out.”

Rountree points to a tan, leathery hood, poor at blocking carcinogens, and then holds up a soft gray Nomex hood that he says should be the standard in every department. He said it was rare for there to be a clear solution to an epidemic.

“There’s the problem and here’s the solution,” he said

Hamilton added there was a chain reaction to assisting firefighters because they will save lives in the future.

“We’re starting here [in Clay] and will go through the state,” Hamilton said.

Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department Lt. Dave Thomas stands to the side of the crowd wearing a cowboy hat and jean jacket. Thomas has served 30-plus years in Duval. He fought off sarcoidosis of the lungs 12 years ago and his lymphoma that was discovered three years ago is in remission.

He said the hoods are a great asset to firefighters.

“In St. Johns County, you can hold the hood up and read the newspaper through it,” Thomas said. “These [new] hoods are going to be a vital step in us heading toward the direction we need to be in.”

Physician Emily Tanzler is a radiation oncologist with Cancer Specialists of Northeast Florida, which paid for the 550 hoods and donated 68 pet scans, at about $1,800 per scan, to first responders last year.

She compared the threats posed to firefighters to that of Agent Orange when veterans came back from the Vietnam War.

“[Hoods For Heroes’] mission and message were very powerful. We thought, ‘How can we help to bring awareness to this inordinate high number of cancers among firefighters?’” Tanzler told a crowd of 75 people. “They also bring [hazardous remnants of fire] home. Not only are they at risk, but their families are at risk. This is going to resonate much farther than what we actually know.”

Clay County Fire Chief Lorin Mock said he began fighting fires as a volunteer in the 1970s. Looking back on past methods, he said the command staffs of various fire departments must encourage a culture change to protect first responders from cancer.

“We didn’t do hoods. We were told by our leaders at the time that you didn’t even want to put your ear flaps down on your helmet because you wanted to use your ears as a means of telling how hot the fire was and whether you could make an entry into a room. That doesn’t look like a very good choice at the moment,” Mock said. “As leaders of change, we have to force the change into the culture. We have to articulate that wearing hoods, washing of the hoods, washing of the bodies and wipes after the fires are things we can do after the fires to reduce the risk because [Dr. Tanzler] is right, we’re still going to have to go into those fires.”