Around 4,000 firefighters in the New York and New Jersey area and hundreds nationwide are suing their fire truck siren manufacturer because of claims they are suffering hearing loss due to the way the sirens are designed. Some have begun to wear hearing aids as a result of it, according to PIX11.
"The siren was so loud inside the cab that it actually physically hurt," said Joseph Nardone, retired New York City fire battalion chief. He claims his head would be pounding by the end of his shift, and that his eyes would begin crossing from the noise. Though he has been retired for a decade, the effects of the sirens have left him with hearing loss that makes him unable to follow rapid conversation, according to the AP.
The firefighters are suing Federal Siren Corp., the Oak Brook, Ill. siren manufacturing company responsible, claiming that the company did not do enough to protect those who have to hear the product in use every day for long periods of time.
The firefighters' attorney, Marc Bern, claims that the sirens are defective. "It's a product that is so loud, it causes noise-induced hearing loss," Bern said. "It is not something that the fire department or municipalities have a responsibility for." He says that the sirens can be designed to be safer, while still functional. "They could have directed the sound by using what we call a shroud," he explained, according to CBS New York.
Federal Signal, the world's largest manufacturer of audible and visual signals, disagrees, stating that any changes "would make the sirens less effective and subject the firefighters and general public to increased risk of serious accidents." They claim to meet the 85 decibel standard set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, according to CBS News.
Thirty-year veteran firefighter and New Jersey fire captain Richard Mikutsky is looking forward to a change, according to PIX11. "We have to fix this or replace because the end result - a lot of deaf firefighters," he said.
