The New York City Fire Department recently purchased Demron personal-protection armor from Radiation Shield Technologies. RST President Ronald DeMeo said FDNY will incorporate the PPE in its chemical protective clothing upgrade program.

“One of the hazards of the job is that [firefighters] are going to be exposed to radiation, either through domestic sources such the transportation of radiological elements or through a dirty bomb,” he said. “If there is a victim inside a radiological environment, firefighters are not going to ignore that victim. They are going to rescue them, and we are trying to provide them with the best radiological protection.”

DeMeo said FDNY’s Hazmat Company No. 1 was one of the teams to deploy Demron, specifically the product line’s two-ply Radiation Torso Vest, W High Energy Nuclear/Ballistic IED RDD RED Shield and Crew Protection Blanket. The vest is worn under hazmat suits to protect vital organs and shields users from X-ray and low-energy Gamma emissions and high- and low-energy Beta and Alpha particles, he said. The nuclear/ballistic shield is a flame- and acid-resistant blanket that helps contain high-energy radiation and meets NFPA Class 2 certification for the 1994–2007 Standard on Protective Ensembles for First Responders to CBRN Terrorism Incidents. In addition, the blanket was custom-created for FDNY to provide nuclear shielding protection for first responders who transport radiation victims.

“The concern was that if a patient was radioactive or contaminated these patients would be a hazard to the FDNY EMS units,” DeMeo said. “Hence, they needed a blanket that would shield firefighters from radiation.”

DeMeo added that the current security climate and concerns about domestic and international terrorism has increased the demand for nuclear and radiological protection equipment.
 
“The market is growing for these products as the concern for radiological contamination and terrorist events increases,” he said.