Located near Watertown, New York, the installation began as Pine Camp in 1908 before expanding dramatically during World War II, when more than 800 buildings went up to support troop mobilization. Renamed Camp Drum in 1951 and officially designated Fort Drum in 1974, the base underwent another major expansion following the 10th Mountain Division's 1985 reactivation, adding more than 130 new buildings alongside extensive housing and support facilities. Today Fort Drum spans more than 107,000 acres, supporting barracks, aircraft support facilities, fire stations, and boiler plants, much of it built between the 1940s and 1980s.
AFFF exposure at Fort Drum
Fort Drum maintained a dedicated Fire Training Area where Army firefighters trained to respond to structural fires, vehicle fires, and fuel-related emergencies, and official Army records trace how that site evolved over time. An original fire training pit gave way to a lined training basin used from 1981 to 1987 for live-fire exercises with AFFF, which was replaced in 1991 by a new fire training pit that continued supporting similar training until it was decommissioned in 2016, giving Fort Drum a documented firefighter training history stretching across four decades.
Whichever era a firefighter trained in, the routine looked much the same. Fuel was ignited to simulate a real emergency, AFFF went down to knock out the fire, proportioning systems got tested to confirm the mix was right, and once training wrapped, vehicles and gear were cleaned, and foam supplies restocked for the next round.
Army firefighters and Department of the Army civilian firefighters carried the bulk of this exposure, joined by fire instructors, firefighter trainees, fire apparatus operators, and the staff who maintained foam systems and firefighting vehicles.
Firefighters exposed to AFFF through decades of training like this fall into the group researchers point to when studying PFAS-related cancer risk:
If your firefighter service at Fort Drum included training at any of these facilities and you've since received either of these diagnoses, our team can review your history and let you know whether you're eligible to file.
Asbestos exposure at Fort Drum
Asbestos was widely used throughout Fort Drum for its fire-resistant and insulating properties, built into mechanical systems and construction materials during the World War II era and later expansions. Materials commonly used throughout its barracks, boiler plants, and administrative buildings included:
Fort Drum's decades of expansion, from the original World War II buildout through the 1985 reactivation-era construction, meant certain trades ran into these materials more than others:
Fort Drum contains infrastructure dating from World War II through the Cold War, including barracks, boiler plants, and utility systems that historically incorporated asbestos-containing materials, and personnel responsible for maintaining these facilities faced the greatest opportunity for exposure across that entire span. Mesothelioma and lung cancer, the two conditions most closely tied to this kind of work, often don't surface for 20 to 50 years after the original exposure, meaning a veteran who worked at Fort Drum decades ago might only be seeing symptoms now. If your service included that kind of maintenance work and you've since received either diagnosis, contact our team to find out whether you're eligible to file an asbestos claim.