Long-term health risks for Montreal firefighters a growing concern

Montreal firefighters are answering a record number of calls and facing multiple long-term health risks, according to a new study.

While Montreal firefighters responded to a record 140,406 incidents in 2025, the union representing the workers said the growing number of calls is taking a serious toll on members’ health.

The annual activity report from the city’s fire department, released Friday, showed an eight per cent increase in interventions compared with the previous year. Nearly 60 per cent of calls involved firefighters acting as first responders on medical emergencies, a number that continues to climb, in part attributed to Montreal’s aging population, chronic illnesses becoming more prevalent, and extreme weather events, including flooding.

For Chris Ross, president of the Montreal Firefighters Association, the statistics reflect a reality firefighters have been living with for years.

“It’s killing us,” Ross said. “Montreal is one of the busiest fire departments in North America and by far the busiest in Quebec.”

New measures for gear

The report also highlighted new measures introduced to reduce firefighters’ exposure to contaminants, including different guidelines to clean and decontaminate protective gear.

Ross welcomed the improvements but argued they arrived years later than they should have.

The union president said firefighters and the city had known since at least 2018 that changes would be required.

While the report points to work that began in 2024, Ross said frontline firefighters did not begin seeing meaningful changes until January 2025, after the union filed complaints with Quebec’s workplace health and safety board, the CNESST.

“Any movement forward is good, but the City of Montreal is not doing enough, and it’s not doing it fast enough,” he said.

Cancer remains a major concern

Ross pointed to what he described as alarming occupational cancer statistics among Montreal firefighters.

According to the union, the CNESST has recognized more than 350 firefighter cancers as work-related over the past 15 years. During that same period, 102 firefighters died from cancers linked to their work.

The concerns come as scientific evidence connecting firefighting and cancer continues to grow.

“In 2023, the [International Agency for Research on Cancer] recognized firefighting as one of the professions known to cause cancer,” Ross said. “There’s no more doubt. The science is clear.”

Some of the danger comes from smoke and toxic substances released during fires. But experts say exposure can also come from equipment firefighters wear every day.

Dr. Danny Whu, chief medical officer for the International Association of Fire Fighters, noted that firefighters regularly encounter carcinogens.

“We’re faced with occupational carcinogens in all of those environments, whether routine or emergent — it happens at the firehouse, on the ground and on the fire lines,” Whu said.

He added that even new protective gear contains brominated flame retardants that are known to be carcinogenic.

Modern construction materials have also changed the risks firefighters face. Whu explained synthetic furnishings and petroleum-based products burn faster, hotter and release more toxic substances than many materials commonly found in homes decades ago.

The former firefighter urged Quebec leaders to closely follow emerging research and quickly adopt recommendations aimed at reducing health risks and exposure.

“It is an epidemic in the fire service,” he said. “We’re doing our best to address it as firefighters, but every other player should join us in decreasing this firefighter killer.”

Union raises concerns about staffing and recognition

Ross said reducing exposure is only one part of the solution.

The union is also calling for expanded cancer screening programs and broader recognition of occupational cancers.

Quebec currently recognizes 15 cancers as presumptively linked to firefighting, while British Columbia recently expanded its list to 26.

Ross argued that this means some work-related illnesses may not be reflected in official statistics.

He also criticized what he described as recent reductions in frontline resources.

Ross said the city temporarily staffed all fire trucks and kept them in service earlier this year while addressing issues related to contaminated gear. However, he said some trucks began being removed from service again in March.

“When you close fire trucks, you increase response times,” Ross said, noting response times have risen by 11 per cent over the past five years. “When our calls are going up and our fires are going up, the last thing we need is to voluntarily increase response times.”

The City of Montreal did not provide a response to CTV News before publication.