Characterizing Wildland Firefighters' Thermal Environment During Live-Fire Suppression.

Wildland firefighters work under adverse environments (e.g., heat and fire exposure), which contribute to increasing the heat strain.

Fractional Contribution of Wildland Firefighters' Personal Protective Equipment on Physiological Strain.

Activities performed by wildland firefighters are carried out wearing a personal protective equipment (PPE). Although the PPE protects workers from a wide variety of hazards, it may increase their physiological response and limit their performance. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of the protective clothing (PPC) and the rest of the PPE elements (i.

Impact of Different Personal Protective Clothing on Wildland Firefighters' Physiological Strain.

Wildfire firefighting is an extremely demanding occupation performed under hot environment. The use of personal protective clothing (PPC) is needed to protect subjects from the thermal exposure. However, the additional use of PPC may increase the wildland firefighters' physiological strain, and consequently limit their performance.

Physical and thermal strain of firefighters according to the firefighting tactics used to suppress wildfires.

The aim of this study was to analyse the physiological strain of firefighters, using heart rate (HR) and core temperature, during real wildfire suppression according to the type of attack performed (direct, indirect or mixed). Three intensity zones were established according to the HR corresponding to the ventilatory threshold (VT) and respiratory compensation threshold (RCT): zone 1, RCT. The exercise workload (training impulse (TRIMP)), the physiological strain index (PSI) and the cumulative heat strain index(CHSI) were calculated using the time spent in each zone, and the HR and core temperature, respectively.

Physiological work demands of Spanish wildland firefighters during wildfire suppression.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to analyze the physiological demands and thermal strain of wildland firefighters during real wildfire suppression.

Methods: The response of core temperature and heart rate (HR) were analyzed in 200 wildland firefighters during wildfire suppression activities of different duration: <1 h (n = 52), 1-3 h (n = 70), 3-5 h (n = 44), and >5 h (n = 34). The exercise workload (TRIMP), the physiological strain index (PSI), and cumulative heat strain index (CHSI) were calculated using the time spent in different intensity zones, the HR, and core temperature.