KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jonathon Messick loved what he did. When everyone ran away from a fire, he ran towards it.
Every day, the Southern Platte Fire Protection District Battalion Chief risked his life to save others.
“He left fingerprints all over the department and that’s because he was so involved and he loved this place so much,” said Fire Captain Dustin Mains.
In August, Messick answered the last alarm. Six months after he was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer, the 40-year-old died.
Fighting Cancer Risks
For firefighters, stories like Messicks’ are all too familiar.
Multiple studies have shown firefighters are at a higher risk for some cancers than the general public because of the carcinogens and cancer-causing agents they come in contact with while battling flames.
Studies have also shown a correlation between time spent at fires and an increased rate of lung cancers, for example, and related deaths.
The International Association of Firefighters now said cancer is the leading cause of death among firefighters.
“These days these houses are full of plastics, glue, much more fire load. They are bigger houses, so they are getting hotter a lot more faster,” said Mains. “The circumstances are changing, and we are trying to change with them more.”
Fighting for Compensation
Currently, in Missouri, firefighters or their surviving loved ones have to prove cancer was job-related. However, that could soon change.
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens wants firefighters to be able to file for workers’ compensation after being diagnosed with cancer.
Earlier in December, he announced his support for House Bill 1647, which would change the burden of proof. Instead of firefighters having to prove their cancer was job-related, fire departments would have to show that an employee did not develop cancer from job-related activities.
The proposed bill would presume cancer is job-related when it is diagnosed in firefighters “assigned to a certain number of years of hazardous duty, exposed to certain agents.”
Thirty-six states have similar legislation. Kansas does not.
Lawmakers in Jefferson City held a hearing on a similar bill last February, but it did not advance out of committee. Now, with the governor’s support, firefighters are hopeful.
“When we sign up to be firefighters, we kind of are aware of the risks of occupational hazards we encounter: fire, heat, car wrecks, weather,” said Mains. “Now with cancer, it can hit us when we’re not on calls, when we’re home, when we’re retired. It makes it tough and it’s not just for us anymore, it’s our families.”
Take Precautions
When Messick passed away, his widow asked that donations be made to the Southern Platte Fire District Firefighters Association to purchase cancer prevention equipment.
He was the second firefighter in the department who had been diagnosed with cancer.
Because of donations, SPFPD was able to purchase a gear extractor to help wash firefighters’ gear.
“It is pretty much like a high-powered washer,” said Mains. “It’s able to extract the most toxic gases and carcinogens out of your gear much more efficiently than washing machines we had been using.”
In addition to the extractor, SPFPD firefighters have two sets of gear.
Like many departments in the metro, after a call, firefighters are required to wipe down areas on their bodies that might have been exposed to soot or smoke and exchange their hoods.
SPFPD firefighters also take a shower as soon as they get back and wash their gear.
