Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE): Fire Fighter Dies at Kitchen Fire - North Carolina

摘要

On August 9, 2000, a 30-year-old female volunteer Fire Fighter (the victim) responded to a reported kitchen fire in a one-story, two-unit, multi-family dwelling. The resident of the apartment involved had extinguished the fire before the Fire Department's arrival, but smoke remained in the structure. Wearing full bunker gear, the victim removed a smoke ejector from the pumper, carried it to the dwelling, and walked back to the pumper. Soon after, while conversing with crew members, she collapsed. An Emergency Medical Technician-Intermediate (EMTI) assessed her and found her to be unresponsive, with shallow breathing, and a pulse. After placing her into the ambulance, she soon stopped breathing, became pulseless, and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was begun. Approximately 80 minutes later, despite CPR and advanced life support (ALS) administered on the scene, en route, and at the hospital, the victim died. The death certificate, completed by the Acting Medical Examiner, and the autopsy record, completed by the Forensic Pathologist, listed 'hypoxia due to pulmonary edema due to cardiomyopathy' as the cause of death. The report contains recommendations that address some general health and safety issues. This list includes some preventive measures that have been recommended by other agencies to reduce the risk of on-the-job heart attacks and sudden cardiac arrest among fire fighters.