National Fire Protection Association addresses safety hazards and provides recommendations
JJKeller – After investigations and additional research reveal that Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) facepiece lenses may undergo thermal degradation when exposed to intense heat, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) issued a safety alert along with recommendations. Among other things, NFPA is recommending that fire departments, fire academies, and emergency service organizations inspect all SCBA facepiece lenses before and after each use. Any SCBA facepiece lens found to have cracks, crazing, bubbling, deformation, discoloring, gaps or holes should be immediately removed from service and a replacement issued. …The concerns with facepiece lenses identified in the NIOSH investigations were brought to the attention of the NFPA Technical Committee on Respiratory Protection Equipment by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the NIOSH Division of Safety Research, Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program. In addition, in 2010 NIST, NIOSH, the Fire Protection Research Foundation (FPRF) and NFPA jointly hosted a research planning workshop on evaluating and addressing the concerns regarding the thermal impact of SCBA facepiece lenses. Subsequently, NIST developed and provided new testing and performance methodologies to the NFPA Technical Committee on Respiratory Protection Equipment. Based on the information learned from the NIOSH investigations and NIST research, this Technical Committee is in the process of incorporating new test methods and performance criteria for facepiece lenses into the proposed 2013 edition of NFPA 1981, Standard on Open-Circuit Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) for Emergency Service, which is slated for completion and issuance as early as the Fall of 2012. Information on the continuing development of this new edition is available at http://www.nfpa.org/1981next. The full alert and recommendations can be found at www.nfpa.org/scba. Please read full and sign up for alerts at JJKeller
JJKeller – After investigations and additional research reveal that Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) facepiece lenses may undergo thermal degradation when exposed to intense heat, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) issued a safety alert along with recommendations. Among other things, NFPA is recommending that fire departments, fire academies, and emergency service organizations inspect all SCBA facepiece lenses before and after each use. Any SCBA facepiece lens found to have cracks, crazing, bubbling, deformation, discoloring, gaps or holes should be immediately removed from service and a replacement issued. …The concerns with facepiece lenses identified in the NIOSH investigations were brought to the attention of the NFPA Technical Committee on Respiratory Protection Equipment by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the NIOSH Division of Safety Research, Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program. In addition, in 2010 NIST, NIOSH, the Fire Protection Research Foundation (FPRF) and NFPA jointly hosted a research planning workshop on evaluating and addressing the concerns regarding the thermal impact of SCBA facepiece lenses. Subsequently, NIST developed and provided new testing and performance methodologies to the NFPA Technical Committee on Respiratory Protection Equipment. Based on the information learned from the NIOSH investigations and NIST research, this Technical Committee is in the process of incorporating new test methods and performance criteria for facepiece lenses into the proposed 2013 edition of NFPA 1981, Standard on Open-Circuit Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) for Emergency Service, which is slated for completion and issuance as early as the Fall of 2012. Information on the continuing development of this new edition is available at http://www.nfpa.org/1981next. The full alert and recommendations can be found at www.nfpa.org/scba. Please read full and sign up for alerts at JJKeller
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