Quincy firefighters seek $2.6M for gear made without "forever chemicals." Why the City Council voted against it.

The president of the union representing 281 Quincy firefighters is speaking out after the Quincy City Council failed to move forward a measure that would fund brand new gear for the fire department that is free of so-called "forever chemicals" that have been linked to cancer.

"Knowing what I know and the levels of chemicals in the gear, it's frustrating," union president Tom Bowes said.

What are "forever chemicals?"

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS or "forever chemicals," are synthetic, long-lasting chemicals linked to cancer.

According to the International Association of Firefighters, recent studies have found PFAS are in all three layers of firefighter turnout gear and pose, "an unnecessary – and serious – occupational threat."

Last summer, Quincy firefighters held a news conference announcing that a well-known researcher found alarming levels of PFAS in their gear, even though the manufacturer advertised the gear as PFAS free. Bowes and the department went on a hunt for new, PFAS free gear, verifying the claims of the new manufacturer through testing.

Quincy Fire Department gear

Now, the department wants two sets of new gear for all of its firefighters at a cost of $2.6 million. Monday night, in a 5-4 vote that drew some murmurs and shouts from the crowd, the council did not move the request for the money out of committee.

"The science is changing so fast that we could get two sets of gear and three years, be back here talking about another chemical," councilor Anne Mahoney said during the question-and-answer period.

"I think that is a very valid point. I agree with you. What I will say is they can't go into a fire without gear," responded Graham Peaslee, a physicist at the University of Notre Dame, renowned for testing PFAS in firefighting equipment.

Councilor Maggie McKee sent WBZ-TV a statement saying, "The science around this topic is changing rapidly. Non-PFAS gear has performance and safety tradeoffs that should be considered before we commit to buying not one, but two sets."

Fall River Fire Lt. Jason Burns, who is the Executive Director of the Last Call Foundation, the non-profit which facilitated the testing of Quincy's gear, said there is no time for questions when firefighters are at risk now.

"Upwards of 75 to 77% line of duty deaths are occupational cancer. So, why are we continuing to subject our firefighters to these toxic chemicals for this person or these people on the council to get other questions asked?" Burns said.

The council will take up the issue again next Monday.