Firefighter Safety: Preventing Burns On the Job

Reported April 2010

MORRISVILLE, N.C. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Firefighters are trained to rush into burning buildings when everyone else is rushing to get out. Protective clothing keeps them safe from flames, but intense heat can still cause burns. Researchers are heating things up in the lab to help keep firefighters safe on the job.

Fighting fires is all in a days work for firefighters risking their lives to save others. Captain Starr Beal of the Morrisville Fire Department in Morrisville, N.C., is one of the fearless ones.

"I am not scared to walk into a burning building," Captain Beal told Ivanhoe.

Protective clothing helps shield firefighters from getting burned, but heat from a fire can reach more than twelve-hundred degrees Fahrenheit, which can cause serious burns without even touching the flames, called a stored heat burn, or steam burns.

"I have had some what we call steam burns, which is typically a combination of first and second degree burns, usually resulting in blisters," Captain Beal said.

Now, textile engineers have developed a new method to test fabrics used in firefighter suits. The test evaluates fire protective clothing and how well a fabric can prevent stored heat burns.

"What we're doing in a stored energy test is simulating the conditions that a firefighter may experience in the field," Roger Barker, Ph.D., a textile engineer at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, N.C., explained.

Researchers take a sample of fabric used in a firefighter suit and expose it to moisture, similar to the sweat of a firefighter. The fabric is then exposed to heat. A thermal sensor measures the heat coming through and how much is stored in the fabric. The test helps predict how much heat the fabric can take before human skin would receive a second-degree burn.

"I hope to see this test contribute to improved materials, improved designs, that provide an additional level of protection for the firefighter," Dr. Barker said.

The test showed how different fabric layers in firefighter suits react to heat, impacting the way future protective gear is designed.

Developing new ways to keep firefighters cool and safe.

Dr. Barker says the National Fire Protection Association may add the test as part of a certification requirement that firefighter suits need to meet.

The Materials Research Society and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health contributed to the information contained in the TV portion of this report.

Click here to Go Inside This Science or contact:

Dr. Roger L Barker
Textile Engineering Chemistry and Science
Raleigh, NC 27695
(919) 515-6577
roger_barker@ncsu.edu

Materials Research Society
Warrendale, PA 15086-7573
(724) 779-3003
http://www.mrs.org
webmaster@mrs.org

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Fred Blosser
(202) 260-8519
http://www.cdc.gov/NIOSH/
fbb0@cdc.gov

Your home could be leaking energy -- and money -- right out of the window. Now there's a new way for you to spot energy leaks and lower your energy bill.

A new combat helmet could give soldiers an edge in the war zone, and help them return home safely.

Safer cars mean a new challenge for fire crews on the scene of a wreck. Now, local fire crews are going high-tech to find the best way to rescue you

Protective clothing helps keep firefighters safe from flames, but intense heat can still cause burns. Now researchers are heating things up in the lab to help keep firefighters safe on the job.

Hurricane season is coming, and that means you'll also be hearing about the weather phenomenon El Nino. Now, scientists say there is a new kind of El Nino that may bring more hurricanes, but also provide an earlier warning.

More than 1,100 tornadoes were reported last year. Like hurricanes, knowing early how severe the season will be, helps meteorologists and the public prepare before it even begins.

Last year, nine killer tornados claimed 21 lives. New studies show there is a key life-saving time for you to hear a storm warning and take cover. Just a few minutes can really make a difference.

Researchers are getting to the bottom of stereotyping, helping to bury age-old beliefs.

A new, surgery-free treatment eases pain from sports injuries and gets players back in the game faster.

For babies born early or with serious birth defects, seconds can mean the difference between life and death. Doctors and surgeons depend on blood tests to know how to best treat the tiniest patients, but the wait for results can seem eternal. Now a new hand-held laboratory gives doctors life-saving information in minutes.

A trial fibrillation is a dangerous condition that causes the heart to beat irregularly. It's the leading cause of stroke and affects over two million Americans. Now there's a new, safer way to treat a-fib

We all know the dangers of using a cell phone while driving. Studies show it's equivalent to being drunk behind the wheel. But walking and talking maybe just as bad!