It has been a widespread problem for firefighters across the United States: sirens on fire trucks blasting at such high volumes that the ears of the men and women inside the trucks physically hurt. Even some retired firefighters are feeling the effects of the sirens, ten years after their last ride in a truck.
As a result, more than 4,400 current and former firefighters have filed lawsuits against the siren maker, arguing that the company could have designed the sirens in a way that would have deflected the sound away from them.
73-year-old Joseph Nardone, a former New York City fire battalion chief, said that “the siren was so loud inside the cab that it actually physically hurt”, and that the maker — Federal Signal Corp. — “had the means and ability to do something about it and they didn’t”. The sentiments are shared by many other firefighters who feel the company should be held liable for the damaging sound blasts, which in some instances reached 120 decibels.
Federal Signal Corp’s Attorney, David Duffy, issued a statement in response to the complaints, citing the importance of the noise to warn others of the incoming fire truck. Sirens need to “project noise to the front and sides of fire trucks”, he said, pointing out that most accidents are the result of vehicle collisions from behind. The company also argues that firefighters are supposed to wear earplugs to protect themselves from the noise while on the job.
Duffy goes on to say that by deflecting the sound away from the firefighters as they are asking would inadvertently put both the firefighters and the public at greater risk.
Federal safety standards require that both the intensity and duration of the sounds be considered when creating a siren. On average, Duffy says that firefighters are exposed to less than 85 decibels of noise, including times they are on their shift.
Duffy’s arguments, however, are doing little to console Nardone, who says his hearing loss has been so bad, he can’t understand rapid conversation. Another former firefighter, Glen Tracy, described his life after retirement: “My children would speak to me and I’d say, ‘What? What? What?’”.
“I can’t hear”, he said. “Someone has to pay”.
The suits have been raising awareness to the potential hearing safety issues associated with sirens. So far, the complaints have only come from firefighters and not police officers. Questions remain over whether Federal Signal’s compliance with regulations will be enough to divert them from product liability settlements.
