The proportion of firefighter deaths that have occurred during training has increased while the number of firefighter deaths overall has declined over the years, according to a National Fire Protection Association report.

The NFPA report finds that 100 firefighters died while engaged in training-related activities from 1996 through 2005, accounting for about 10% of all on-duty firefighter deaths. Of these 100 victims, 47 were local volunteer firefighters, 39 were local career firefighters, and the remaining 14 were from other organizations.

“Training is an essential part of fire department operations, and it is worrisome that the training proportion of firefighter deaths has increased," said Rita F. Fahy, Ph.D., manager of fire databases and systems for NFPA. “Firefighting is a dangerous profession and to see deaths occurring due to activities that are meant to prevent death and injury is distressing."

The largest number of training-related deaths involved firefighters participating in apparatus and equipment drills, accounting for 36 deaths. Of those, 21 suffered sudden cardiac death.

The second largest number of training deaths over the 10-year period occurred while firefighters were taking part in an activity meant to promote health — 30 died during physical fitness training. Of those deaths, 23 were attributed to cardiac events.

Sudden cardiac death (usually heart attacks) is the number-one cause of firefighter fatalities overall, and the same is true for those during training. Just over half of the firefighters who died while training during the 10-year period died due to cardiac events. According to the study, sudden cardiac death was responsible for 53 of the 100 deaths.

“It is our hope that this 10-year study will help prevent future deaths by identifying areas where training safety can be improved,” said Fahy.

To download the full report in PDF format, click here.