FEMA for firefighters: Fairmont launching wellness program for department

FAIRMONT - When fire roared through the former J.G. Lampkin Funeral Home on Pennsylvania Avenue this past February, memories weren't the only thing that went up with the flames.

All the carpets, curtains, wood-paneled walls and gilded adornments - not to mention the antique furniture then being stored there at the time - generated a toxic airborne stew that Fairmont firefighters still took in, despite their respirators and other protective gear.

Benzene, polycyclic hydrocarbons, formaldehyde and more, are always going to be part of the high-Fahrenheit proceedings, Fairmont Fire Chief Brian Starn said.

"We use synthetics in everything," he said of the myriad plastics-based materials used in home and commercial building construction.

Which is why firefighters get sick, the American Cancer Society says.

Firefighters are already prone to higher-than-average rates of skin cancers and kidney cancers due to all of the above, the society chronicles.

Lung cancer and esophageal cancer, too.

It can be even worse in north-central West Virginia, where many homes and commercial buildings are older and have asbestos within their walls.

Last month, Fairmont's fire department became the first in West Virginia to achieve the Gold Helmet designation from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health for signing on with its cancer registry.

The Gold Helmet effort tracks cancer rates among firefighters while also being heavy on screening and prevention programs.

On Thursday, Starn's department sparked its own efforts in the arena, with the help of FEMA and WVU Medicine.

A $246,000 grant awarded to the city from the emergency management agency will be used to launch a health and wellness program geared specifically to the 41 full-time fighters in the department.

Targeted cancer screenings and general health assessments will be part of the plan, Starn said, along with behavioral health supports addressing PTSD, anxiety and depression.

"It's a tremendous investment in the health, safety and future of our firefighters," said Starn, whose father Rick, also served as department chief.

"We're excited about our partnership with WVU Medicine," he said.

Aaron Yanuzo, the president of WVU Medicine's Fairmont Medical Center, said everyone owes a debt to a workforce that runs in the direction of the smoke and flames that others are trying to escape.

"They deserve the same commitment to their health and safety that they provide for all of us," Yanuzo said.

So they "can return home safely to their families after every shift," the administrator added.