Section 296-305-07012. Personal protective clothing and equipment for wildland firefighting.

(1) Protective apparel and equipment for wildland firefighters shall be designed to provide thermal protection for the firefighters against external heat sources with flame resistant clothing and equipment without creating high heat stress loads due to the prolonged work periods they experience. Members performing suppression on a wildland fire shall wear a provided protective clothing ensemble as directed by their employer. The combined protective clothing ensemble includes:

(a) Hardhat/helmet;

(b) Upper and lower torso clothing;

(c) Gloves; and

(d) Goggles.

The 2005 edition of NFPA 1977, Standard Protective Clothing and Equipment for Wildland Firefighting, shall serve as a guideline for determining performance characteristics of this clothing.

Note:	This requirement does not apply to logging company employees whose primary job duty is not fire suppression, but are called upon to fight a wildland fire they discover.

(2) As a minimum, members shall wear provided leather lace-up boots of sturdy construction which shall extend upward a minimum of eight inches above the top of the sole to the lowest point of the top of the boot. The sole of the boot shall be slip resistant.

(3) Additional personal protective equipment to be provided and worn shall include a fire shelter as directed by the incident commander. Persons provided fire shelters shall be trained in their use and shall receive refresher training at least annually.

(4) Wildland protective clothing shall comply with this standard.

(5) Personnel operating Type 1 or Type 2 engines assigned to structural protection shall carry structural firefighting ensembles for each firefighter on their assigned apparatus.

(6) Wildland personnel protective clothing shall not be used for interior structural firefighting.

(7) Personnel wearing full structural firefighting clothing while engaged in fighting wildland fires shall not expend more than one hour before rotating to rest and rehabilitation. Agencies may rotate crews to avoid the one-hour benchmark when containing and controlling wildland fires.

(8) Fire departments shall establish written procedures for the care, use, maintenance, and retirement criteria for wildland firefighting protective equipment in conjunction with the manufacturers' recommendations.

(9) Fire departments shall establish written procedures for the use of protective clothing and protective equipment while performing wildland firefighting activities.

(10) All wildland fire shelters purchased after the effective date of this rule must meet or exceed the United States Forest Services' Missoula Technology and Development Center (MTDC) design criteria and performance requirements for "new generation fire shelters."

[Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.010, 49.17.040, 49.17.050, 49.17.060 and 29 C.F.R. 1910.156, Fire brigades. WSR 13-05-070, § 296-305-07012, filed 2/19/13, effective 1/1/14.]

RCW 49.17.010, 49.17.040, 49.17.050, 49.17.060 and 29 C.F.R. 1910.156, Fire brigades. WSR 13-05-070, § 296-305-07012, filed 2/19/13, effective 1/1/14.