Which Coast Guard jobs had the greatest likelihood of AFFF exposure?

Roles most commonly tied to AFFF exposure

Several Coast Guard positions placed personnel in direct, ongoing contact with AFFF as part of routine duties rather than isolated incidents. The following roles carried some of the highest likelihood of exposure:

• Aircraft rescue and firefighting personnel handled AFFF through live fire drills, aircraft crash response, and foam system testing at Coast Guard air stations.
• Damage controlmen encountered foam while fighting shipboard fuel fires, running damage control drills, and operating fixed foam suppression systems.
• Firefighters working near hangars, flight lines, and fuel storage areas who were around fixed AFFF systems before PFAS-free alternatives became available.
• Engineering and maintenance personnel who handled AFFF concentrate while servicing pumps, valves, and suppression equipment, regardless of active fire response.
• Damage control instructors who taught firefighting techniques over many years and often accumulated more exposure than those responding only to occasional emergencies.

A job title alone does not determine eligibility for a claim. What matters is how often you handled AFFF, how many years that exposure lasted, and whether you were later diagnosed with a qualifying cancer such as kidney cancer or testicular cancer.

Talk to ELG Law to find out if you qualify for a claim

If your Coast Guard duties involved firefighting, damage control, or foam system maintenance and you were later diagnosed with a qualifying cancer, an attorney can help determine whether your records support an AFFF claim. ELG Law has represented veterans in toxic exposure cases for more than three decades. Contact us today for a free, no-obligation case review.