Fort McMurray firefighters who battled 2016 wildfire twice as likely to develop asthma: study
A recent study from the University of Alberta has found firefighters who battled the Fort McMurray wildfire are twice as likely to develop asthma.
Researchers recruited more then 1,200 Alberta firefighters after the 2016 wildfire to assess long-term effects caused by long periods of particulate exposure.
“Those who were dealing with burning organic matter were exposed to a barrage of small particles in the smoke, and the ones with the highest exposure have long-term consequences,” Nicola Cherry, an occupational epidemiologist and the principal investigator, said.
According to Cherry, one-in-seven firefighters continued to have chronic issues after the blaze was extinguished. She said many of the firefighters didn’t have specialized lung protection equipment or were not able to wear it while fighting the wildfire.
“It’s very difficult to rush uphill pulling equipment behind you if you have a heavy mask on that doesn’t let you breathe,” she explained.
“The firefighters from Fort McMurray were the people that were there first, and it was their city, and they were very concerned to save as much of it as they could.”
Heat waves are seen as cars and trucks try and get past a wild fire 16km south of Fort McMurray on Highway 63 Friday, May 6, 2016. (Jonathan Hayward / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
Cherry told CTV News Edmonton she modelled her research on studies that followed the respiratory health of first responders following 9/11.
“It’s not easy to do this kind of study during a catastrophe,” she said.
“At the World Trade Center, the exposure was mainly to inorganic dust, whereas in Fort McMurray it was burning vegetation, as well as buildings. It’s interesting that we saw similar results from very different exposure.”
'YOU DON'T WANT TO PUT YOUR ESSENTIAL WORKERS IN DANGER'
The U of A research team has looked at three main sources of evidence about the lung health in firefighters before and after a fire. They assessed health records, age, sex, geographic location and health status.
According to Cherry, the team also measured the firefighters’ lung function. Some of the firefighters with no history of chronic respiratory disease or smoking were randomly selected for clinical follow up, including CT scans and methacholine challenge testing, used to check for asthma.
“This study shows clearly that it is possible for exposures to cause changes in the lung that don’t get better over time,” she said.
In this May 7, 2016 file photo, a wildfire burns south of Fort McMurray, Alberta. (Jonathan Hayward /The Canadian Press via AP, File)
As wildfire season ramps up during the summer months, Cherry told CTV News people become very dependent on the work of firefighters as they are essential in protecting all of us.
“You don’t want to put your essential workers in danger,” she said.
“They are young healthy people when they go in, and you want them to end the fire season as young healthy people.”
Cherry said she will continue to study the occupational health of firefighters in the hopes of recommending ways to make their work safer.
She’s now studying whether wearing a mask or washing skin more often could reduce exposure to chemicals from smoke.
“We are trying to come up with clinical indicators that could be helpful to firefighters whose lungs have been damaged.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
For the first time in report's history, Canada's air quality worse than U.S.
Thanks to wildfires, air quality in Canada is now worse than in the U.S., according to the 6th Annual World Air Quality Report.
A newspaper says video of Prince William and Kate should halt royal rumour mill. That's a tall order
Prince William and his wife Catherine have been filmed at a farm shop near their Windsor home, The Sun newspaper reported -- the first footage of Kate since she had abdominal surgery for an unspecified condition two months ago.
'You ask for your money, they disappear': Ontario man loses $17K to AI crypto scam
A Toronto man is spreading the word of a cryptocurrency scam that lures victims using AI-generated news sites after he lost $17,000 in investments.
DEVELOPING Canada's annual inflation rate ticked down to 2.8 per cent in February, defying expectations
Statistics Canada says the annual inflation rate edged down to 2.8 per cent in February.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
High thoughts: The habits of Canadian cannabis users are revealed in a new StatCan report
Statistics Canada has conducted a series of surveys to measure the impacts of legalized cannabis since the Cannabis Act took effect in 2018. The latest one, the 2023 National Cannabis Survey, sheds light on users' preferences and habits last year.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Trump says Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and their religion
Former U.S. president Donald Trump on Monday charged that Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and hate 'their religion,' igniting a firestorm of criticism from the White House and Jewish leaders.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.