Grenfell Tower Fire: Toxic Effluents and Assessment of Firefighters' Health Impacts.

Abstract

Objective: This study assesses the health symptoms and longer-term health outcomes of firefighters who attended the Grenfell Tower fire.

Methods: All available data sources were analyzed, including databases published by the Public Inquiry, the Firefighter Cancer and Disease Registry, incident logs, and sickness reports up to 3 years postfire.

Results: More than three times as many firefighters who reported exposure to smoke during the fire also reported digestive and respiratory diseases following the fire, compared with those not reporting exposure to smoke. Other more complex relationships are reported among smoke exposure, immediate health symptoms, and longer-term health outcomes.

Conclusions: The incident's urgency led professional firefighters to operate without respiratory protection equipment, resulting in debilitating health effects.