PICTURES: Inverness firefighters raise awareness of job’s cancer risk while helping Macmillan
A charity event in Inverness has highlighted pioneering measures to save firefighters' lives as well as raising funds for a deserving cause.
The coffee morning in aid of cancer charity Macmillan was organised by the local Fire Brigades' Union (FBU) and held at Inverness Fire Station on Saturday, raising £300.
Subscribe to receive our free email newsletters
As well as refreshment those who popped along were able to find out about the station’s country-leading work to cut the serious cancer risk posed by firefighters’ work.
Carbon and other dangerous chemicals from burning material can increase cancer risks among those exposed to them, a particular danger to firefighters as they tackle blazes.
At the coffee morning FBU Inverness branch representative Gary Curran, also the union’s north area health and safety representative, talked about the stark findings of a health study involving more than 1000 firefighters which was carried out by a team from the University of Central Lancashire and funded by the FBU.
“Firefighters’ mortality rate from all cancers is 1.6 times higher than the general population,” he said.
“The mortality rate from a heart attack is five times higher and from a stroke three times higher.
“We are not only at a higher risk from cancers, we are also developing cancer much earlier than the general population, sometimes five to 10 years earlier, and at higher risk from the cancers that have fewer treatment options and the ones that don’t present until they are in later stages.”
Working with the fire service itself, though, he added, “considerable progress” has been made in tackling the carcinogenic risk, culminating in a new Standard Operating Procedure.
On that front Inverness has pioneered new post-fire cleaning and decontamination measures - helping reduce exposure to potentially harmful substances - put in place as part of a £1.8 million refurbishment of the city’s fire station.
Mr Curran thanked fire service staff for their help with the coffee morning as well as local branches of Tesco and Harry Gow for donations.
