Southern Indiana firefighters push for support of bill aimed to prevent injuries and cancer

JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind. (WDRB) -- A fight to improve firefighter safety in Indiana is now in the hands of lawmakers.

Senate Bill 258 calls for better safety standards, including lower cancer rates among the state's firefighters.

At the Jeffersonville Fire Department, it's more than a call for service. It's a calling.

"We help people, that's what we do," firefighter Joe Hurt said. "At this point in my life, I can't imagine anything else I'd rather be doing.

Hurt, president of Jeffersonville Firefighters Local 558, is well aware of the risks.

"We've had everything from back injuries to eye injuries, everything you could think of, ceiling collapses in house fires, we've seen all that," he said.

Hurt is also involved in the Indiana's Professional Firefighters Union and said firefighters across the state and country are dealing with the same types of injuries and cancers.

Senator Eric Koch, R-Bedford, is calling on the experts to come up with a new list of "best practices" through SB 258.

"By establishing best practices we can bring more safety and better health to firefighters who have to work in that environment," said Koch.

The bill would require the Board of Firefighting Personnel Standards and Education to cover how to avoid cancer-causing chemicals and how to prevent firefighters' most common injuries, big and small.

"Just because your knee went out on an incident, maybe you've been doing something wrong with your knee for the last 15 years every time you get onto the truck," said Hurt, adding that the standards could also explore firefighters' body mechanics on the job.

The bill would also give workers' compensation rate discounts to agencies that followed those best practices. It could get final approval in the next couple of weeks.

"Help us keep the firefighters healthier and safer," Hurt said. "Because we're here to help the citizens."