1989-1998

The 41st IAFF Convention is held in Vancouver, British Columbia. Delegates formally endorse Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton for U.S. president and Tennessee Senator Albert Gore for U.S. vice president. General President Al Whitehead  and General Secretary-Treasurer Vinnie Bollon  are re-elected to their second four-year terms. The IAFF unveils a new commemorative medal honoring fallen fire fighters to be presented to the surviving spouse and family members of IAFF members killed in the line of duty. Cast from 10-carat gold, the words “Dedication, Honor, Sacrifice” are written in the middle of the medal and the inscription “In Memory” is on the bottom of the Maltese Cross.

List of All IAFF Conventions →

The IAFF publishes pictures and brief biographies of IAFF-endorsed candidates seeking election to the U.S. House and Senate in the 1992 election. More than 200 candidates who were beneficiaries of FIREPAC support win congressional seats.

For the first time, the IAFF organizes a block of delegates for a major party presidential nominating convention. Sixteen delegates are elected from their local unions as delegates and alternates to the Democratic National Convention in New York City, helping put Bill Clinton and Al Gore on the presidential ballot.

Audrey McLaughlin, MP (Yukon), Leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada, summarizes recently introduced Right-to-Know hazardous substances bills in Parliament.

IAFF President Al Whitehead testifies before the House Committee on Education and Labor on the need for reform of the OSHA Act, which does not cover 7.5 million state and local employees who do not have state OSHA plans.

The IAFF’s “1990 Annual Death and Injury Survey” marks the most comprehensive compilation of such statistics for care of fire fighters in the history of the IAFF. Results show that career fire fighters suffer job-related injuries and illnesses at a rate that is more than four times higher and nine times more severe than the average for workers in the private industry. Similarly, the rate of line-of-duty deaths among career fire fighters is nearly three times that of workers in the private industry.

February 5, 1992

Two Indianapolis, Indiana, fire fighters are killed while battling a three-alarm hotel fire when a flashover occurs and engulfs them in flames. Faulty electrical wiring in a refrigerator or the electric wall outlet on the third floor of the seven-story structure was blamed as the source of the fire.

An IAFF study of 63 major cities shows that fire fighters in companies of less than four are one-third more likely to be killed or injured on the job.

The American Medical Association states that all firefighting units should carry defibrillators and be trained in their use, that fire departments should handle emergency medical dispatching and that at least four personnel should respond to any call for cardiac arrest victims.

History of Fire-Based EMS →

The IAFF offers the first new design of the St. Florian medal in 30 years. St. Florian is the patron saint of fire fighters.

The IAFF sends powerful new video public service announcements featuring scenes from the movie Backdraft to 500 television stations in the U.S. and Canada.

The IAFF Burn Foundation holds its first Sports GrandSlam Sweepstakes to raise funds. Tickets costs $5.00 each and the grand prize is two 1993 Super Bowl tickets, two 1993 NBA Finals tickets and two 1992 World Series tickets, including roundtrip airfare and hotel accommodations for all three events. The IAFF raises a total of $37,000 from sweepstakes ticket purchases.

IAFF pay and benefits data reveal that in 1991, the average U.S. municipal fire fighter earned $34,340. Canadian fire fighters averaged $41,340. U.S. federal fire fighters continued to suffer from the government’s inequitable pay practices, averaging $29,834 (for a GS-5), while working shifts much longer than their municipal counterparts.

The IAFF’s agreement with the Bank of Baltimore to offer an official IAFF credit card yields an excess of 7,600 new applications. U.S. locals obtain IAFF-branded corporate cards. Efforts to obtain a credit card for IAFF Canadian members is unsuccessful.

October 24, 1992

Two Alton, Illinois, fire fighters die when the roof of a vacant building collapses during a fire. Two men are charged with arson in connection with the tragedy and the deaths of both fire fighters are ruled homicides.

IAFF members raise $8.75 million for the Muscular Dystrophy Association during the Labor Day Telethon.

MDA and the IAFF →

The U.S. Department of Labor issues regulations intended to protect fire fighters and paramedics from infection via blood-borne diseases. The OSHA-developed rules require employers to provide workers with training and protective clothing, puncture-proof receptacles for medical wastes and free vaccinations against hepatitis B.

The IAFF claims that the IAFC and the National Volunteer Fire Council and their allies endanger professional fire fighter safety in opposition to the NFPA 1500 standard. The IAFF, the USFA and fire fighters push for a minimum staffing level of four. The IAFF publishes a special issue of the International Fire Fighter to outline the controversy and defend its position. The IAFF asks members to write to NFPA regarding its proposed Tentative Interim Amendment, which would add to the NFPA 1500 Standard a requirement for minimum safe fire ground staffing.

NFPA and the IAFF →

At least six fire fighters are injured by rioting mobs in the wake of the Rodney King beating by police officers in Los Angeles.

The IAFF membership exceeds 195,000 professional fire fighters in the United States and Canada.

The IAFF supports modification to Bill C-45, which makes it possible for the government of Canada to establish a national electronic registry for the transportation of hazardous goods.

The IAFF publishes the entire text of a “Fire Chiefs Under Attack” document designed to assist chiefs in dealing with IAFF locals in relation to wages and working conditions. A confidential resource guide for fire chiefs who “felt that they were having problems with local unions,” the guide warns members to “check your office, car and conference room for listening devices,” suggesting that fire chiefs should be wary of surveillance by private investigators lurking in the shadows.

The Auxiliary to the IAFF (formerly the Ladies Auxiliary) creates a 310-recipe cookbook that sells for $8.00.