PFAS Firefighter Gear Lawsuit

Turnout gear, sometimes called bunker gear, is the protective clothing that firefighters wear to shield themselves when battling a fire. It is composed of three layers, including an outer shell to repel water, a moisture barrier and a thermal liner.

Turnout gear contains per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). These manufactured chemicals have been used in consumer products like nonstick cookware for decades, in part due to their repelling properties.

PFAS are used in firefighter gear to repel oil and water, as well as to protect against heat. However, research indicates that exposure to PFAS may be connected to the development of cancer and other serious health problems.

Several types of PFAS lawsuits are being filed over these claims, including turnout gear lawsuits.

PFAS firefighter gear lawsuits focus on claims that PFAS, also known as forever chemicals, are used in turnout gear and have caused firefighters to develop serious health conditions.

One common forever chemical that has been linked to health issues like cancer is PFOA. In response to drinking water contamination from these chemicals, the Environmental Protection Agency determined that the amount of PFOA in drinking water shouldn’t exceed four parts per trillion.

According to a lawsuit filed by numerous firefighter organizations, the amount of PFOA in the outer layer of tested turnout gear was 182,000 parts per trillion. The thermal liner contained 78,000 parts per trillion.

Firefighters who developed health conditions after using turnout gear are seeking compensation from the companies that manufactured the chemicals included in the gear’s protective layers.

You might be eligible to file a PFAS firefighter gear lawsuit if you or a loved one used turnout gear and developed cancer or other serious health conditions tied to forever chemicals.

Some cancers that have been connected to PFAS include liver, kidney, testicular and thyroid. Ulcerative colitis, which is a type of inflammatory bowel disease, has also been tied to these chemicals.

If you worked as a firefighter, paramedic or first responder, turnout gear is not the only way that you may have been exposed to PFAS. Aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), a type of firefighting foam that contains PFAS, was used for decades at fire stations, airports and military bases.

People are now filing AFFF lawsuits over claims that they developed these serious health issues after being exposed to the foam.

Exposure can occur through skin contact or contaminated drinking water. Some cases allege that AFFF seeped into groundwater and drinking water supplies, leading to water contamination lawsuits.

PFAS health effects are wide-ranging, with research tying several types of cancer to the chemicals.

According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, people who are exposed to PFOA develop and die from kidney cancer at higher rates than the average person.

Testicular cancer is also a potential PFAS exposure symptom. Researchers at the University of Cincinnati found that rates of testicular cancer among firefighters are 100% higher than in the general population.

According to the American Cancer Society, various studies have also connected PFAS exposure to:

In addition to cancer concerns, research has tied PFAS to numerous other health conditions, including cholesterol issues. In 2023, Harvard researchers found that PFAS exposure is associated with higher blood lipid levels, which can adversely impact cholesterol levels.

PFAS Exposure Particularly High for Firefighters

The amount and length of exposure may play significant roles in the adverse health effects of PFAS. A big part of the problem for firefighters and first responders is that their PFAS exposure is both long-lasting and from multiple sources.

Firefighters may be around PFAS almost every day, potentially increasing their risk of severe health issues. A 2025 study found that firefighters have higher concentrations of these chemicals in their blood than other essential workers.

PFAS firefighter gear lawsuits focus on companies that produced the potentially dangerous chemicals that have been added to the gear.

One key defendant is multinational conglomerate 3M, which has faced litigation across the country over its decades of industry-leading PFAS chemical manufacturing.

According to a lawsuit filed on behalf of firefighters affected by turnout gear, 3M knew as early as the 1960s that PFAS is toxic and does not break down in the environment. It was more than 30 years before 3M shared these concerns with regulatory agencies.

DuPont is also a main defendant in the litigation after manufacturing PFAS for decades. Similar to 3M, lawsuits claim that the company was aware of the potentially harmful health effects of PFAS for decades, yet continued to manufacture the chemicals.

“Defendants knew or should have known that turnout gear containing PFAS was extremely dangerous to fire fighters,” one lawsuit states. “It placed them at increased risk of adverse, substantial, and potentially lethal health effects, including but not limited to various cancers.”

Firefighters who have filed turnout gear lawsuits may seek various types of compensation. This can include monetary damages for the injury suffered, financial losses and medical costs.

If a case were to go to trial, the possible damages would likely be divided into compensatory and punitive. Compensatory damages are meant to compensate you for your losses, while punitive damages are additional money intended to punish the defendant in the lawsuit.

Some firefighter gear lawsuits are also pushing for the defendants to pay for medical monitoring and early cancer detection testing for people who may have been impacted.

Firefighter gear lawsuits remain active, with more cases continuing to be filed. Thousands of PFAS-related cases have been consolidated into multidistrict litigation (MDL). This is a strategy used to streamline the litigation process when many similar lawsuits are filed.

While the MDL is not specifically for turnout gear, a 2024 court document showed that more than 1,000 cases in the MDL over AFFF concerns also include claims related to firefighter gear.

Firefighter gear lawsuits are also advancing outside of the MDL. Here are some of the latest updates relating to these cases.