Tag Archives: Tucson Firefighters

Coming Soon….News that is good for the heart!

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Firefighters are known for having big hearts … but research has also shown they have astoundingly high rate of heart attacks and cardiac-related death. According to a 2007 Harvard Medical School study, cardiovascular events account for 45 percent of deaths among firefighters on duty. In contrast, heart attacks are considered responsible for only 15 percent of deaths that occur in conventional jobs.

That’s backed up by a year-long study conducted in 2008 at Saint Joseph’s Hospital in Atlanta. Researchers of the project, sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, examined hundreds of firefighters in Gwinnett County, Georgia. Members of that study group, they found, were 300 times more likely to suffer a heart attack at work than employees in any other profession. 

Tucson has an opportunity do work in that area as well. Dr. Wayne Peate, department physician for 21 fire agencies in Southern Arizona, and an associate professor at the University of Arizona College of Medicine, would like to test the use of ultrasound imaging to detect abnormalities that put firefighters at risk of cardiac disease. 

The Foundation is interested in helping with funding for the important study. More on that later …

Report from the Chairman

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Borders and Boundaries
Regardless of where you live in the greater Tucson community, there are firefighters prepared to take care of you. Maybe you live in Vail, but are traveling to Phoenix for the day, or to catch a flight out of Sky Harbor on your summer vacation. You leave home, traverse the Tucson community through Oro Valley and up I-10 toward Phoenix … and if you needed help along the way, it is possible you could be assisted by four or more firefighter agencies  – from Rincon Valley Fire, Tucson Fire, Northwest Fire and Rescue, Golder Ranch Fire, Rural-Metro Fire or Avra Valley Fire, depending on your route.

All of those departments are yours. All of those departments are prepared to take care of you. The address printed on your drivers’ license may not be in their service area, but if you are in their service area and need help, nothing will stop them from responding to your emergency.

There are more than 1,700 firefighters in the metropolitan Tucson area served by the Greater Tucson Fire Foundation. There are no true borders or boundaries in the fire service; all firefighters are united by their profession and desire to serve. The Foundation recognizes their professional service and our passion to “take care of those who take care of us” is not limited by political barriers. We are here to respond to their needs, as they respond to the needs of their communities.

History
The passion of one Foundation volunteer, Al Ring, has made a unique and special contribution to the Foundation’s mission of “Honoring the Past.” Working with Assistant Chief Dave Ridings, Al has scanned the archival history of the Tucson Fire Department and created a searchable data base of public records. The Tucson Fire Department was founded in 1881, one year after the railroad came to the Old Pueblo. Beta testing on the data has begun, but shortly afterward, members of the general public, students, historians and the just curious will be able to search a 140 year history of TFD containing more than 60,000 documents and images. The Fire Foundation’s TFD Archive page will soon be live at www.tucsonfirefoundation.org.

Taking care of those who take care of us
Those who we count on to take care of us are becoming more at risk every day. You will read in this issue what the Fire Foundation is doing to take care of our firefighters. You can partner with the Foundation through a legacy gift or a restricted donation. All Foundation staff are volunteers, and all donated funding goes to support operations to ensure our firefighters are cared for today and into the future.

To conclude, thank you for your continued support. Please forward this e-newsletter to whomever you feel would be interested or benefit from the information. To be added to the Fire Foundation emailing lists, please send a request to tucsonfirefoundation@gmail.com. Thank you and be safe. 

 Yours in caring, Mike McKendrick, Chairman, Greater Tucson Fire Foundation

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