Senators propose bill to require PPE for wildland firefighters, but some have reservations

Source: NBC News

Nov. 17, 2025, 5:00 AM EST


For decades, federal firefighters have trudged and parachuted into wildfires with only “a bandana and a prayer,” as the saying goes, to protect them from inhaling dangerous toxins. Meanwhile, studies increasingly connect smoke inhalation to lung cancer and premature death.

A new bipartisan Senate bill would direct the U.S. Forest Service and the Interior Department to develop and implement mandatory respiratory protection for wildland firefighters and supporting staff.

Under the Healthy Lungs for Heroes Act, co-authored by Sens. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and John Curtis, R-Utah., firefighters would be required to wear approved respirators or masks when smoke exposure surpasses limits set in consultation with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

“Firefighters are heroes, and it’s critical that we do everything possible to ensure they’re protected from the health risks associated with wildfires,” Schiff said in an emailed statement. “I’m going to push for Congress to pass this commonsense proposal.”

Former and current federal firefighters say they welcome the proposed changes but worry that without carefully curated gear tailored to their specific needs, the wrong respirator or mask could make an already strenuous job more difficult.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/senators-propose-bill-require-ppe-wildland-firefighters-reservations-rcna243813

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FFS this should be common sense. If you have entities like the NWS that issue Air Quality Alerts and monitors the Air Quality Index, where local authorities will recommend that their residents take precautions when the conditions warrant, you would think the firefighters, who are right there in the smoke, would have some kind of protection.

(the article says that some of the types of respirators can hinder them so work needs to be done to remedy that)