Slight drop in firefighter fatalities in 2010
The USFA last week released its provisional 2010 firefighter-fatalities report. There were 85 on-duty firefighter fatalities in the U.S. as a result of incidents that occurred in 2010, a 6% decrease from the 90 fatalities reported for 2009. Illinois experienced the highest number of fatalities with nine on-duty deaths, followed by New York (8), Ohio (8), Pennsylvania (7) and Kansas (5), according to the USFA.
“When evaluating the trend in on-duty firefighter fatalities over more than three decades, the past two years have seemed to reflect a possible change in the firefighting culture of the U.S. where ‘Everyone Goes Home,’ including all firefighters,” acting U.S. Fire Administrator Glenn Gaines said in a statement. “Working closely with our partners, USFA will continue every effort to be sure that when it comes to firefighter health and safety this downward trend in on-duty firefighter deaths continues.”
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