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Home My WebLink About2017-09-12; City Council; ; Adopt a resolution accepting a donation of equipment from the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation for the Carlsbad Fire Department@ S~~fiR~port Meeting Date To: From: Staff Contact: September 12, 2017 Mayor and City Council Kevin Crawford, City Manager Mary Murphy, EMS manager Mary.murphy@carlsbadca.gov or 760-685-6403 CA Review WC..- Subject Adopt a resolution accepting a donation of equipment from the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation for the Carlsbad Fire Department. Recommended Action Adopt a Resolution accepting the donation of two infrared Chemica l Detox Units from the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation in the amount of $13,000. Executive Summary The Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation was created as a 501(c)(3) in 2013 with a mission to raise the funds needed to enhance fire and rescue services, support public outreach, safety education, and provide scholarships to dependents of Carlsbad firefighters and paramedics. Established by Carlsbad residents, one of the Foundation's goals is to raise and provide supplemental funding for "equipment and materials needed to enhance the capability of the fire department and the services it provides to the citizens of Carlsbad, the commercial sector and civic organizations." The Foundation has secured funding for two infrared Chemical Detox Units in the amount of $13,000 that are to be installed at Fire Stations 3 and 5. The purpose of the units is to allow the firefighters to detox cancer causing chemicals from under their skin and therefore reduce the risk of further absorption into the body and the negative health effects that follow. Discussion Thirty-seven years of research by the University of Cincinnati indicates that firefighters have a much higher incidence of cancer than the general public. Increased risks of developing specific cancers are as follows: • Testicular cancer {102% greater risk) • Multiple myeloma (53% greater risk) • Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (51% greater risk) • Skin cancer {39% greater risk) • Prostate cancer (28% greater risk) • Malignant melanoma (31% great risk) • Brain cancer (31% greater risk) • Colon cancer (21% great risk) • Leukemia (14% greater risk) • Breast cancer (primarily in women) Page 47 #3 Cancer rates among firefighters will likely worsen as builders continue to use new composite materials. Modern furnishi ngs are more combustible and release dangerous chemicals when exposed to heat and fire. The chemicals in these materials, liberated by heat, seep through a firefighter's turnout gear, reaching the skin and ultimately the bloodstream. The chemicals in the blood stream are now toxins that travel to the organs of the body's detoxification and reproductive systems, where they can cause lethal damage such as, the production of malignant cells. Although there is no practical way a firefighter can avoid exposure to carcinogenic chemicals encountered in response to every fire, there are ways to mitigate some of the hazards once they return to their stations. Medical research has shown that infrared Chemical Detox Units can be effective in preventing illnesses by removing harmful chemicals from the body before they trigger disease. In 2010, doctors working with infrared sauna technology conducted a study using more than 2,000 lab test samples of blood, urine and sweat. The results showed that a person sweats out 10 times more toxic heavy metals than were excreted through urine. Earlier this year the fire department installed a Chemical Detox Unit at Fire Station 1. After every fire personnel followed a regiment of showering, 20 minutes of aerobic exercise inside the Chemical Detox Unit, followed by another shower. The combination of exercise and heat produces a heavy sweat, opening the pores, and in doing so flushing the toxins out from under the skin. For the first time in their careers personnel who have been using the unit at Fire Station 1, report no smell of smoke from their skin or hair after using the detox unit as directed. Something they have never experienced in the past. Fiscal Analysis The equipment represents a one-time donated purchase of $13,000 by the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation. There is no matching funds requirement. Next Steps Accept the donation of two infrared Chem ica l Detox Units from the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation, to be located at Fire Stations 3 and 5. Environmental Evaluation (CEQA} Pursu ant to Public Resources Code section 21065, this action does not constitute a "project" within the meaning of CEQA in that it has no potential to cau se either a direct physical change in the environment, or a r easonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, and therefore does not require further environmental review. Public Notification N/A Exhibits 1. Resolution accepting the donation of two infrared chemical detox units from the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation in the amount of $13,000. 2 Page 48 RESOLUTION NO. 2017-176 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, ACCEPTING A DONATION OF EQUIPMENT PURCHASED BY THE CARLSBAD FIRE DEPARTMENT FOUNDATION FOR THE CARLSBAD FIRE DEPARTMENT IN THE AMOUNT OF $13,000. Exhibit 1 WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Carlsbad, California has determined that the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation was created as a 501 (c)(3) in 2013 with a mission to raise the funds needed to enhance fire and rescue services, support public outreach and safety education, and provide scholarships to dependents of Carlsbad firefighters and paramedics; and WHEREAS, the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation is requesting to donate two Chemical Detox Units that will be used to allow the firefighters to detox cancer causing chemicals from under the skin and therefore reduce the risk of further absorption into the body and the negative health effects that follow. The units will be located at Fire Stations 3 and 5; and WHEREAS, although there is no practical way a firefighter can avoid exposure to carcinogenic chemicals encountered in response to every fire, there are ways to mitigate some of the hazards once they return to their stations. Medical research has shown that infrared Chemical Detox Units can be effective in preventing illnesses by removing harmful chemicals from the body before they trigger disease; and NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Carlsbad, California, as follows: 1. That the above recitations are true and correct. 2. That the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation requires no matching funds. 3. The Council authorizes receipt of two Chemical Detox Units donated by the Carlsbad Fire Department Foundation, valued at $13,000, for the Carlsbad Fire Department. PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Carlsbad on the 12th day of September, 2017, by the following vote, to wit: AYES: NOES: ABSENT: M. Hall, K. Blackburn, M. Schumacher, C. Schumacher, M. Packard. None. None. A ENGLESON, Ci y Clerk (SEAL)