Firefighters deal with risk of “forever chemicals” in foam [Video]

A safer foam now exists, but tens of thousands of gallons of AFFF still sit in fire stations across America.

BELLBROOK, Ohio — Inside Fire Station 22 in Bellbrook, Ohio, Lt. Jay Leach helped remove buckets of firefighting foam known as aqueous film-forming foams (AFFF) — a tool undeniably effective at suppressing and smothering fires, but one also laced with PFAS, or so-called “forever chemicals,” which are now linked to various cancers.

“Most firefighters who got into this job know the inherent risks, but we never knew the gear and equipment we’re using is killing us,” Leach said.

Cancer was the cause of 72% of active-duty firefighter deaths last year, according to the International Association of Firefighters. A separate study showed that smoke inhalation causes just 4% of active-duty firefighter deaths.

For Leach, cancer’s heartache has no limits.

His wife, Tracy, was a firefighter for 25 years. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2017, despite no family history of cancer.

“It pretty much ravaged …