Fire unions sue manufacturers to cover cost of replacing PFAS gear

Attorneys representing fire unions and municipalities have consolidated five class action lawsuits into a single case in Minnesota. The suit targets more than a dozen companies that manufacture turnout gear or the materials used to make it. The legal team claims the defendants concealed the health risks of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, for decades while marketing the chemicals as safe.

The dispute centers on the high cost of replacing existing equipment. Firefighters nationwide are still wearing gear that contains PFAS, a group of man-made chemicals linked to cancer. A 2020 study from Notre Dame confirmed high levels of these substances in both new and used turnout gear. The research found that the chemicals can leach from the fabric and soak into first responders' skin.

Chris Albani, a firefighter and Connecticut fire union representative, said the fear of long-term exposure has changed how his colleagues view the equipment. Albani noted that cancer is the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths for firefighters. He said he tries to avoid touching his jackets and pants until necessary because they contain the chemicals. “It’s the PFAS that is intentionally put in the gear. And it’s poisoning members,” Albani said.

Municipalities face a financial strain when replacing this gear. Albani estimated that a baseline set of pants and a jacket can cost up to $3,000. Adding a helmet and gloves brings the total to between $5,000 and $8,000 per member. For a department of 200 people, the expense becomes a major budget item for local taxpayers.

Jennifer Sclar, an attorney representing fire unions and municipalities on the East Coast, said the manufacturers understood the dangers of PFAS long before recent scientific findings. “The defendants understood the dangers of PFAS,” Sclar said. “This is not like it came out of the sky in 2018. The defendants have long understood what the dangers of PFAS were and are.”

Court documents and records from the Environmental Working Group show that 3M and DuPont internally labeled PFAS as toxic in the 1960s and 1970s. By the 1980s, both companies moved women of child-bearing age off certain assignments to limit exposure. In the 1990s, their own records indicated scientists were finding links between PFAS and cancer. 3M argued in filings that it did not manufacture the gear and that firefighters had not alleged physical injuries. DuPont previously stated the complaints were without merit.

The lawsuit aims to make manufacturers pay for the replacement gear. Ed Kelly, who runs the International Association of Fire Fighters, said the union wants to ensure the companies that infused the chemicals into the gear for decades pay for the new equipment. “We want to make sure that these manufacturers who knew full well that this dangerous chemical was harmful to human beings.. that they’re paying for this gear that we need to replace,” Kelly said.

Trust in the manufacturers has eroded after a 2025 incident in Quincy, Massachusetts. The fire department paid millions for new, supposedly PFAS-free gear, but independent tests that same year revealed high levels of the chemicals. Mayor Thomas Koch called the discovery outrageous at a press conference. The manufacturing company said it eliminated PFAS from its textiles that year and that recent tests showed very low levels were not intentionally added. The consolidated case remains pending in Minnesota federal court.