Quantico firefighters AFFF claim: firefighting foam exposure and legal options

For the military and civilian firefighters, Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting crews, crash rescue teams, and aviation firefighting personnel who served there, that history includes decades of direct contact with aqueous film-forming foam, or AFFF, a firefighting agent now at the center of thousands of personal injury claims nationwide. If you served at Quantico in any capacity that brought you into contact with AFFF and have been diagnosed with cancer, ELG Law can review your service records and help you understand your options.

AFFF use at Marine Corps Base Quantico

Quantico's Fire and Emergency Services department has long been responsible for protecting one of the most operationally complex installations in the Marine Corps. The base supports aviation operations, weapons and tactical training, officer education programs, and the FBI Academy, all of which created sustained demand for fuel-fire suppression capability across the installation's airfield, flight lines, and aircraft hangars. Maintaining ARFF readiness across those areas meant foam systems were regularly tested, deployed, and maintained throughout the installation.

AFFF became the military standard for Class B fires involving jet fuel, diesel, and other petroleum products beginning in the late 1960s and early 1970s. At Quantico, foam use extended well beyond actual emergencies and included:

• Live-fire pit drills and foam deployment exercises on the airfield
• Aircraft emergency response training and aviation firefighting scenarios
• Crash rescue preparation drills and aircraft emergency simulations
• Foam system testing, equipment certification, and firefighting foam washdowns
• Emergency response simulations using high-pressure spray systems

Because marine firefighters and crash rescue teams rotated through these activities repeatedly across their years of service, contact with AFFF was not a single event. It was a recurring part of the job throughout their time at the installation.

Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting exposure at Quantico

Quantico's airfield required continuous Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting coverage throughout flight operations. ARFF crews maintained readiness along the flight lines, responded to aircraft emergencies, conducted crash rescue preparation drills, and supported aviation firefighting training on a regular basis. Given that Quantico functions as both an operational and training installation, the demand for ARFF capability was consistent and ongoing, which meant foam deployment occurred as a scheduled part of daily and weekly operations across the airfield and surrounding aircraft hangars.

ARFF firefighters at Quantico participated in fuel-fire training, aircraft emergency response exercises, and recurring crash rescue drills that brought them into direct and repeated contact with AFFF throughout their assignments. Civilian and military personnel who served alongside these crews during those exercises faced the same foam exposure environment, regardless of their primary job title. For many, that contact accumulated over years of service at the base.

Exposure during training exercises

A significant portion of AFFF contact at Quantico occurred through training rather than actual emergencies. Marine Corps firefighters and aviation firefighting personnel participated in a range of recurring training exercises, including:

• Recruit training and firefighting school instruction
• ARFF instruction and certification exercises
• Emergency response drills and crash rescue simulations
• Fuel-fire exercises involving live foam deployment
• Foam application training in both enclosed and open-air environments

Running these exercises on a weekly or monthly basis meant repeated AFFF contact that added up over the length of an assignment. That pattern of cumulative exposure is at the heart of how PFAS compounds build up in the body over time.

Exposure beyond emergency fire responses

Many military firefighters report that their most frequent contact with AFFF occurred during routine maintenance and upkeep of foam suppression systems rather than during emergencies. Common exposure situations at Quantico included:

• Maintaining and inspecting foam suppression systems in aircraft hangars
• Filling storage tanks with AFFF concentrate
• Conducting firefighting foam testing and system certification
• Performing firefighting foam washdowns and system flushes
• Cleaning equipment after training exercises and foam system discharges

Those responsible for foam system maintenance worked directly with concentrate and mixed foam solution, often without the protective equipment that would have been warranted given what is now known about PFAS chemicals.

Firefighters and Marines with damage control responsibilities

Beyond dedicated crash rescue teams and aviation firefighting personnel, Marines assigned to fire brigade duties and emergency response units at Quantico also encountered AFFF through training exercises involving foam. These personnel included:

• Members of firefighting teams and fire brigades participating in foam deployment drills
• Emergency response unit personnel completing military firefighting training
• Marines with fire brigade duties who rotated through fuel-fire exercises
• Damage control personnel who trained alongside dedicated firefighting crews

Fire brigade and emergency response personnel participated in fuel-fire exercises and military firefighting training alongside their broader damage control work, putting them in the same foam exposure environment as those dedicated to firefighting full-time.

Other personnel who may have encountered AFFF

Foam exposure at Quantico was not limited to those with firefighting job titles. Other personnel who worked near foam deployment areas, flight lines, and aircraft hangars may also have encountered PFAS, including:

• Aircraft mechanics working in hangars equipped with automated AFFF deluge systems
• Aviation support personnel stationed along the airfield and flight lines
• Crash-response support personnel who assisted during exercises and incidents
• Emergency-response trainees completing aviation firefighting instruction at the base

How Quantico personnel were exposed to PFAS

PFAS chemicals including PFOS, PFOA, and PFHxS were present in the AFFF used at military installations like Quantico. These compounds don't break down in the body or the environment, and military firefighters and crash rescue crews were frequently not warned about the long-term risks of repeated contact. Exposure occurred through:

• Inhalation of aerosolized foam mist during high-pressure deployments
• Contaminated turnout gear worn across multiple shifts
• Soaked gloves, boots, and protective equipment
• Contact with foam runoff during cleanup after drills and exercises

The enclosed nature of aircraft hangars and training environments meant inhalation exposure was more intense than it would have been outdoors, raising the potential dose absorbed with each training session.

What Quantico’s PFAS contamination findings mean 

Environmental records related to Quantico reveal PFAS contamination in groundwater linked to the base’s history of using firefighting foam. Detected compounds include PFOS, PFOA, PFHxS, and PFBS, the same chemicals found in legacy military-grade AFFF formulations. The installation was placed on the National Priorities List in 1994 as part of broader environmental remediation efforts, and official Marine Corps Base Quantico announcements have confirmed that PFAS substances were detected in portions of the installation's water systems during testing. 

The Department of Defense directed all military branches to stop using PFAS-based AFFF at land-based installations by October 1, 2024, a mandate that reflects the scale of concern surrounding firefighter exposure and groundwater contamination at installations across the country.

ELG Law is reviewing AFFF claims from Quantico service members

ELG Law has spent over three decades representing individuals who developed serious illnesses following toxic exposure. If you were stationed at Quantico, worked in firefighting or crash rescue operations, and have since received a linkable diagnosis, your service history and the base's documented contamination record are relevant to your AFFF claim. Our attorneys will review your military records and medical documentation to assess your eligibility.