Firefighters are exposed to environmental hazards in their line of work. The same thing can be said for military personnel, who also face radiation and chemical hazards. Military firefighters, due to their specialized line of work, are facing extremely high risks of developing medical conditions from chemical exposure, especially from decades of using aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF). When AFFF was introduced in the 1960s for military airports, hangars, and bases, military firefighters were unaware of the risks associated with using a seemingly harmless foam that was the most effective solution for fuel fires.
Decades later, the U.S. military remains the largest user of AFFF in the world, with portable extinguishers and AFFF systems installed in hundreds of military installations. The cancer-causing chemicals in the foam, called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), can accumulate in the blood serum or organs of exposed individuals, and military firefighters are at high risk. If you worked as a military firefighter, you may have documentation of your AFFF exposure from the following duties and activities:
- Attending fire academy exercises involving Class B fire. Some recruits may enter the military without prior firefighting training and get sent to the fire academy. Your academy records may have documented AFFF exposure in classes where you had to suppress liquid fires using “Class B foam”.
- Operating a tactical firefighting truck (TFFT). A military TFFT may hold about 60 US gallons of AFFF. Operating this equipment and responding to fires using this AFFF-holding vehicle exposes up to six firefighters in the vehicle to high volumes of firefighting foam.
- Performing fire drills or working near field areas where AFFF was heavily sprayed. In preliminary investigations of military bases, PFAS chemicals are often concentrated in firefighting field areas, where high volumes of foam are released during drills and tests.
- Working near AFFF storage or equipment with spills and leaks. AFFF systems have been installed in hundreds of military sites, and gallons of AFFF may be spilled when these systems fail. A malfunction in four wall cannons at Brunswick Naval Air Station in August 2024 drained the foam tanks, releasing 1,450 gallons of foam and 50,000 gallons of water.
In August 2025, the Department of Defense delayed the AFFF ban for one more year. According to the DoD Secretary, the transition to fluorine-free foam in the military is complicated and time-consuming. With this extension, the new deadline for ending the use of AFFF in military sites is October 1, 2026. With many months before the phase out, military firefighters continue to get cumulative exposure to AFFF, which may result in higher PFAS serum levels and increased risks of AFFF-related cancer.
Relevant job titles
- Fire Protection Specialist (Air Force)
- Damage Controlman (Navy)
- Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) Specialists
- Expeditionary Firefighting and Rescue (EFR) Specialist
- Driver Operator
- Fire Chief
- Station Chief
