Exposure to toxins may be cause of Spokane fire chiefs’ deaths

Firefighter deaths from job-related diseases are becoming more common, the fire marshal said.

  • Will Campbell The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.
  • Thursday, January 3, 2019 1:14pm
  • Northwest

By Will Campbell / The Spokesman-Review

For the second time in less than a week, the Spokane Valley Fire Department has announced the death of a former fire captain, and again, work-related exposure to toxins is suspected as the cause.

On Friday, the department announced that former Capt. Tim Cruger, 67, died of cancer caused from exposure to smoke while on the job. Five days later, on Wednesday, the department announced the death of former Capt. David Phay, 57, adding that an investigation is underway to determine if Phay’s death was linked to work-related toxins encountered on the job.

Phay died on Dec. 17, according to a news release from the Spokane Valley Fire Department. During his 28-year career he worked as a firefighter, paramedic, lieutenant and captain in Spokane Valley. He retired in October 2015.

Phay’s obituary stated he was diagnosed with a rare disease in May 2018, possibly caused by cancer. He is survived by his wife, Michelle, his children Justin, Jason, Riley, Christian, Seth and Jared, as well as six grandchildren.

Cruger died on Dec. 24, according to the department’s Friday announcement. During his 29-year career, he served as an engineer, lieutenant and captain. He retired in 2015. Soon thereafter he developed kidney cancer, which metastasized to his colon, lungs and brain, according to a Spokane Valley Fire Department Facebook post.

Cruger’s father, Melvin Cruger, a former Spokane Fire Department captain, died on Dec. 6. The cause of his death is not currently known, but he was in his 90s, said Spokane Valley Engine 7 Capt. George Hedebeck, a vice president of the Spokane Valley firefighters union.

Both Phay’s and Cruger’s deaths are considered line-of-duty deaths, according to Washington state occupational disease laws. The Spokane Valley Fire Department is waiting on autopsy results to see if cancer was the root cause of Phay’s illness, Hedebeck said. Regardless of the result, however, his death qualifies as a line-of-duty death because it falls within a 60-month window after his retirement.

Phay died from hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), a rare disease more common in infants and young children, according to Hedebeck, but adults can get it too. In adults, cancer or infections can cause HLH.

Phay’s memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Sunday at Advent Lutheran Church, 13009 E. Broadway Ave., in Spokane Valley. The date of Cruger’s memorial service has not been announced.

Greg Rogers, fire marshal for the Spokane Valley Fire Department, said firefighter deaths from job-related diseases are becoming more common, but since firefighters have become more aware of the problem, they have changed their culture to work more safely by adopting new technologies.

“It’s one of the biggest things that our industry is going through right now,” he said. “It’s really changing things.”

Spokane Valley now has a second set of gear for each firefighter, and after one set is exposed to smoke, it goes into “extractors” that wash out carcinogens.

“Twenty-five years ago, you would only have one set of gear. You came back from a fire and hosed it off and were going out for a next call 40 minutes later,” he said. “Now, after a crew has gone in to fight a fire, we try to cycle them out first and shower and clean up.”

He also said new clothing materials that firefighters use are better at reducing exposure to carcinogens.

In an effort to curb exposure, the Spokane Valley Fire Department has been buying more extractors and second sets of gear. The department is also getting $600,000 worth of new self-contained breathing apparatus equipment in the next two months, Hedebeck said.

“All of these things were implemented before the recent deaths, but (Phay’s and Cruger’s) exposure was years ago,” Hedebeck said. “Both worked in an era where the protections we have in place were not in place then. It was cool to have a black, sooty helmet. It was cool to have a dirty mask — we’re trying to change that behavior.”

As a firefighter, Phay worked as a mechanic on respirators, a job that could likely lead to more exposure.

“These things that we carry into every fire, Dave would take apart and repair,” Hedebeck said. “In essence he was exposed to every fire.”

After retirement, Phay taught CPR and was an instructor to high school students at the Spokane Valley Tech Fire Science program, according to a news release. He was also a director of the Spokane Valley Firefighters Benevolent Association nonprofit.

Rogers said the department has taken the deaths hard.

“The biggest thing for us is two members died this close together,” he said. “We hadn’t even had time to grieve over one and we’ve already had another.”

He remembered Phay as someone who’s emblematic of firefighters.

“He definitely made a big impression on everybody in the department,” Rogers said. “He’s an example of what our profession should be and what it should be about.”

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Northwest

Guns for sale at Caso’s Gun-A-Rama in Jersey City, New Jersey, which has been open since 1967. (Photo by Aristide Economopoulos/New Jersey Monitor)
After suing, WA gets carveout from Trump administration plan to return gun conversion devices

The Trump administration has agreed to not distribute devices that turn semi-automatic… Continue reading

The Wild Horse Wind and Solar Facility about 16 miles east of Ellensburg in central Washington is part of Puget Sound Energy’s clean energy portfolio. (Courtesy of Puget Sound Energy)
Megabill’s elimination of tax credits for clean energy projects could cost WA $8.7 billion

Washington households could see electricity costs increase $115 per year by 2029; 21,800 workers could lose their jobs by 2030, analysts say.

Washington State Ferries said it would deploy its new electric ferries first on the Mukilteo-Clinton run. Additional orders are expected to follow to replace more than a dozen other aging vessels in the fleet. (Photo by Tom Banse)
Washington state to buy new hybrid electric ferries from Florida shipyard

Gov. Bob Ferguson made the final call to turn down a higher bid from a local boat builder.

The Washington state Capitol. (Photo by Jacquelyn Jimenez Romero/Washington State Standard)
These Washington laws take effect July 1

Fee hikes for hunting and fishing licenses, workplace protections for immigrants and… Continue reading

Washington will have the nation’s third-highest state gas tax behind California and Pennsylvania.(Photo by Bill Lucia/Washington State Standard)
Gas tax will rise in Washington on July 1

Washington’s century-old fuel tax is going up again. On Tuesday, the gasoline… Continue reading

The BEAD program was created under the federal infrastructure law that former President Joe Biden signed in 2021. It was fashioned as a way to expand high-speed internet service into rural areas and other parts of the country where it was unavailable or lacking. (Stock photo)
Feds throw Washington’s $1.2B broadband program into disarray

States spent more than two years preparing to distribute the infrastructure funding, now the Trump administration is making last-minute changes to the rules.

Firefighters undertake a prescribed burn at the Upper Applegate Watershed near Medford, Oregon on Thursday, April 27, 2023. Such burns can help reduce the risk of large wildfires. (Kyle Sullivan, Bureau of Land Management/Flickr)
Trump looks to ‘consolidate’ wildland fire agencies

An executive order signed earlier this month by President Donald Trump would… Continue reading

Photo courtesy of Washington governor’s office
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, center, met with several statewide elected officials on Monday to discuss the how federal funding cuts could impact the state.
Tax collections tumble again in latest Washington budget forecast

The decline in receipts will force the state to draw down savings, but Gov. Bob Ferguson said he isn’t ready to summon the Legislature into a special session.

An EV charger in Granite Falls outside of Granite Falls City Hall on Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024 in Granite Falls, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Seattle judge orders Trump administration to unfreeze EV charger funding

The preliminary court ruling would unlock the money for more than a dozen states, including $71 million for Washington.

Nearly three-quarters of acute care hospital inspections were late, as of December, according to the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee. One facility hadn’t gotten a state inspection since early 2018. (Stock photo)
Washington faces major lag in state inspections of hospitals

Washington state inspectors are way behind in their examinations of hospitals and… Continue reading

A classroom inside College Place Middle School in Lynnwood in 2023. New discipline guidelines for public school students will go into effect across Washington state next month. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Washington updates student discipline rules for public schools

New discipline guidelines for public school students will go into effect across… Continue reading

The Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, which is one of the largest immigrant detention facilities in the western U.S. (Grace Deng/Washington State Standard)
WA looks to strengthen safety net for children whose parents are deported

Detained immigrant parents worried who will pick their children up from school.… Continue reading

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.