|
Line of Duty Death Notification,
Assistance and
Investigation Policy
NOTIFICATION
Notification of the IAFF Headquarters of a
Line-of-Duty Death
In the event of a line-of-duty death, the local
union must notify the IAFF District Vice President and the IAFF and
be prepared to supply the following information:
- Member’s full name
- Member’s age at death
- Member’s rank
- IAFF membership number
- Date of death
- Cause of death (if known)
- Name/Address/Telephone number of spouse (married); parents
(single) or next of kin.
- Names/Ages of children
- Local union number, President, Address/Telephone number
- Local union officer serving as PSOB contact
- Name/Address/Telephone number of mayor/local jurisdiction official
- Name/Address/Telephone number of fire chief
- Name of fire department
- Funeral arrangements (dates, times, and
locations)
The IAFF Division of Occupational Health, Safety
and Medicine Line-of-Duty Death Form should be immediately
faxed, even if partial information is available, to the IAFF.
Upon receipt of the above information, the
General President notifies the General Secretary-Treasurer who
notifies, by email and facsimile, all IAFF Vice Presidents,
State/Provincial Associations, and when requested, local
affiliates. The Vice President of the district where the death
occurred will be immediately contacted by email and telephone.
Also, when a line-of-duty death notice is sent to the Vice
Presidents the full funeral home address and telephone number
will be listed in order for flowers to be sent.
Upon receipt of the above information, the
Division of Occupational Health, Safety & Medicine, prepares and
sends appropriate notifications and condolences from the General
President to the following:
- President of the United States/Prime Minister of Canada
- Senators or Member of Parliament from Deceased’s State/Province
- Congressman or MLA/MPP from Deceased’s Congressional
District/Riding
- U.S. Secretary of Labor
- Governor of State/Provincial Premier
- Mayor/Local Jurisdiction Official
- Fire Chief
- Local Union President
- Appropriate Family Member(s)
The IAFF Division of Occupational Health, Safety
and Medicine notifies the following:
- All IAFF Departments, including the IAFF Canadian Office
which notifies appropriate Federal and Provincial government
officials.
- United States Fire Administration
- U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance (PSOB)
- IAFF Fallen Fire Fighters Memorial
- IAFF PSOB Coordinator
- IAFF Chaplain
- NIOSH Fire Fighter Fatality Program
Appropriate letters have been developed and
electronically maintained for all above categories. Files are
maintained in the IAFF Office for later use (e.g. for the IAFF
Death and Injury Survey). The IAFF Division of Occupational
Health, Safety and Medicine maintains a computerized data bank
of all IAFF line-of-duty deaths.
U.S. PSOB Claims
Upon receipt of the above information, the IAFF
Division of Occupational Health, Safety and Medicine provides
the local union with appropriate information on the Public
Safety Officers’ Benefits (PSOB) Program.
The IAFF Division of Occupational Health, Safety
and Medicine notifies the PSOB Coordinator of the line-of-duty
death and provides the PSOB Coordinator with the above
information.
When necessary, and upon the request of the
District Vice President, the General President assigns the PSOB
Coordinator to assist the local union with the PSOB claim.
The PSOB Coordinator coordinates with the
District Vice President and the Division of Occupational Health,
Safety and Medicine in working with the local union and the
family to assure timely filing of the PSOB claim.
Upon completion of the PSOB case and award of
claim, the PSOB Coordinator forwards the claim file to IAFF
Division of Occupational Health, Safety and Medicine office for
storage and future use. The IAFF Division of Occupational
Health, Safety and Medicine maintains all IAFF member claims and
benefits since 1976.
Representatives at the Funeral for a
Single Line-of-Duty Death
IAFF attendance at a line-of-duty
funeral will include the IAFF District Vice President for the local
jurisdiction and, where appropriate, representatives designated and
approved by the General President.
IAFF Delegation at the Funerals for
Multiple Line-of-Duty Deaths
A delegation of IAFF
representatives at a line-of-duty funeral where multiple deaths
occurred shall include the General President, the General
Secretary-Treasurer, the Chairman of the Fallen Fire Fighter
Memorial Committee, the District Vice President where the death
occurred and a contingent of District Vice Presidents and a Trustee
in adjacent geographical districts as follows:
Line-of-Duty Death in
District 1, 3, 4 or 12
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 1
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 3
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 4
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 12
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 15
-
Eastern Trustee
Line-of-Duty Death in
District 2, 5, 8 or 14
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 2
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 5
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 8
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 14
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 13
-
Eastern Trustee
when in District 8 or 14
-
Western Trustee
when in District 2 or 5
Line-of-Duty Death in
District 7, 9, 10 or 11
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 7
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 9
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 10
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 11
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 6
-
Western Trustee
Line-of-Duty Death in
District 6, 13, or 15
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 6
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 13
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 15
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 1, when in District 15
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 5, when in District 13
-
Vice President,
IAFF District 7, when in District 6
-
Canadian Trustee
Line-of-Duty Death in
District 16
The General President
shall have the discretion to increase the delegation of IAFF
Executive Board members when due to extenuating circumstances such
additional representation is warranted.
The General President
shall also have the discretion to approve attendance at any funeral
if such attendance is requested by a District Vice President.
Martin E. Pierce Commemorative
Line-of-Duty Death Medal
In honor of fire fighters that die in the
line-of-duty, the IAFF presents the Martin E. Pierce
Commemorative Line-of-Duty Death medal to the family of the
deceased. In such cases, the President of the deceased member’s
local union, or the local president’s designee, is responsible
for notifying the IAFF as soon as possible that a medal is
required.
The surviving spouse or family member of all IAFF
members killed in the line-of-duty on or after the August 5,
1990, passage of 1990 Convention Resolution 85 are eligible to
receive an IAFF commemorative medal on behalf of all the members
of the IAFF at no cost. Affiliates wishing to obtain a
commemorative medal for the spouse or family members of an IAFF
member, who was killed in the line-of-duty prior to the date of
adoption of Resolution 85, must make such a request through the
International General President. Upon approval, the local may
purchase a medal from the IAFF at cost.
Definition of Line-of-Duty Death
For the purposes of this medal, the line-of-duty
death of an IAFF member is defined as one of the following:
- Any death of an IAFF member where the deceased member’s family
would be eligible for a line-of-duty death benefit under the regulations of the
U.S. Public Safety Officers’ Benefits program.
- Any death of an IAFF member that has been determined to be a
line-of-duty death by his or her local fire department or employer.
- Any death of an IAFF member where the member died of an injury
or illness incurred while engaged in emergency or non-emergency duties on the
job or as a result of the job.
- Other cases where a local president makes a formal request to
the General President, who will evaluate the circumstances surrounding the death
of the IAFF member and make a determination based on the facts. Such cases
could include the death of an IAFF member resulting from an injury or illness
incurred while performing fire fighting or emergency medical duties as a “Good
Samaritan” while off duty, or other similar circumstances.
Medal Presentation
The method of presenting the medal to the surviving
spouse or family member of a deceased IAFF member depends upon the
individual circumstances, the wishes of the family, and the advice
of the local union. It is incumbent upon the local union to
communicate with the deceased’s family to determine whether it is
appropriate to present the medal during the funeral service, during
the memorial service, at graveside, or at some other location or
later date. It is the responsibility of the local union president,
or the local president’s designee, to contact the IAFF as soon as
possible to inform of the decision on when the medal will be
presented.
Depending on the circumstances, the wishes of the family, and input
from the local union, the medal will be presented to the family of a
deceased IAFF member by the local president or other designated
officer of the deceased member’s local. In the case of multiple
line-of-duty fatalities, the local union president or the local
president’s designee may request that the General President, the
General Secretary-Treasurer, or the respective District Vice
President make the medal presentation for that local.
Order of Entitlement
- In the event of a line-of-duty death, the
surviving spouse is entitled to receive the commemorative medal.
- In the event that the spouse is deceased or
otherwise unavailable, the child of the deceased member is
entitled to receive the medal.
- In the event of multiple children, the oldest
child is the recipient.
- If there is neither a surviving spouse nor
child, the parent(s) of the deceased member receives the medal.
- If there were no spouse, child, or parent,
the oldest sibling of the deceased member would receive the
medal.
IAFF Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial
In the week following the member’s death, the United States and
Canadian National Flags, along with the Colorado and member’s
State/Provincial Flag are to be flown at half-mast at the IAFF
Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
The names of all IAFF members who died in the line-of-duty will be
inscribed on the memorial’s Wall of Honor. The IAFF shall
honor these members during the annual ceremony at the Fallen Fire
Fighter Memorial Grounds. The ceremony will be held in
September of each year and will honor those that died during the
previous year ending on June 1. During the ceremony, each
honored member’s name will be read and the family or family
representative will receive the IAFF flag in a walnut and glass
presentation case.
The Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial will notify the
local affiliate and family of the ceremony and collect necessary
information for the memorial program and for assisting with
program logistics.
IAFF
International Firefighter Last Alarm
The names of all IAFF members who die in the
line-of-duty will be published in the LAST ALARM section of the
International Firefighter.
IAFF Website
LODD notification and funeral information will be posted on the
IAFF website’s home page and such information will remain active
until the day after the final funeral services. The names of
all IAFF members who die in the line-of-duty will be maintained
on the website. The IAFF will also maintain
a web-based Distribution List service, which allows members to
receive line-of-duty-death announcements via email. The IAFF
Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial webpage will include all members
names that have been inscribed on the Fallen Fire Fighter Wall
of Honor.
Line-of-Duty
Death Investigation
The IAFF General President may authorize a
line-of-duty death investigation for any incident where there
has been multiple deaths, a single death with unusual
circumstances, or an incident of serious fire fighter injuries
with unusual circumstances. An investigation may be authorized
if there is any reason to suspect any one or more of the
following conditions:
- The collective bargaining agreement between the
jurisdiction and the IAFF local affiliate was violated;
- The fire department produced a biased or inaccurate
investigation report;
- Standard operating procedures or fire department
policies were nonexistent or not followed properly;
- Applicable OSHA, NFPA or other relevant standards were violated;
- Personal protective clothing or equipment was implicated as
being causal in the incident;
- The IAFF local union believes compelling facts surrounding the
incident warrant an investigation; or
- The General President believes a line-of-duty death
investigation is necessary.
The District Vice President for the local
jurisdiction will be kept apprised of any investigation.
IAFF's Front Line Policy
In some circumstances, a line of duty death may have been
caused by the negligence or intentional acts of a third party.
Family members may intend to pursue a suit against the third party.
Where an affiliate officer believes that a traumatic line of duty
death, or serious traumatic injury, of an IAFF member may have been
caused by negligence or intentional wrongdoing, the officer should
contact the District Vice President regarding the IAFF's Front Line
Policy. The IAFF's Front Line Policy was created to make
available legal representation by and/or through the IAFF's General
Counsel's Office for legal cases in which it is determined that the
IAFF and/or its members have a significant interest arising from the
death or serious injury of an IAFF member because of: (a) defective
products; or (b) the negligence of a third party.
The
Line-of-Duty Death Reporting Protocol was first adopted by the
IAFF Executive Board in January 1989. The IAFF Commemorative
Medal was authorized by action of the 40th IAFF Convention in
August, 1990 when delegates adopted Resolution 85. The IAFF
Executive Board adopted the protocol for qualification and
presentation of the medal in December, 1992. The IAFF
Commemorative Medal was named the IAFF Martin E. Pierce
Commemorative Medal in honor and memory of Secretary-Treasurer
Martin E. Pierce at the 43rd IAFF Convention in August 1996.
The IAFF Executive Board adopted the IAFF Investigation Policy
in July, 1997. The IAFF Executive Board revised and adopted the
IAFF Line-of-Duty Death Notification, Assistance, and
Investigation Policy in July 1997. The IAFF LODD Reporting
Initiative and the IAFF LODD database policies were adopted at
the 45th IAFF Convention in August 2000. The policy
was further reviewed and revised by the IAFF Executive Board
Occupational Safety and Health Committee and Fallen Fire Fighter
Memorial Committee. It was approved by the IAFF Executive Board
in May 2003. This Policy was further revised to address
IAFF delegations for multiple LODD funerals by the IAFF Executive
Board Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial Committee. The revision was
approved by the Executive Board in June 2009. In June 2010,
the policy was revised by the IAFF Executive Board to include
information on the IAFF's Front Line Policy.
[to top]
|
