Firefighter Turnout Gear Lawsuits Warrant New MDL Over PFAS Risks: Motion

Firefighter associations are urging members of the profession to limit their exposure to turnout gear as much as possible, due to health risks associated with exposure to toxic PFAS chemicals.

The city of Rochester, New York, is calling for a new MDL (multidistrict litigation) to be established for all federal lawsuits over health risks associated with exposure to toxic and cancer-causing chemicals in firefighters’ protective turnout gear.

The U.S. Judical Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) has been asked to consolidate and centralize about a half-dozen firefighter turnout gear lawsuits before one federal judge in the District of Minnesota, for coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings in claims.

Each of the claims raise similar allegations that various different chemical manufacturers and fire safety companies failed to adequately warn about the potential risks associated with firefighters’ exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

Often referred to as “forever chemicals,” PFAS have been widely used for decades in firefighting safety equipment, or turnout gear, because of their resistance to heat, water and oil.  However, the synthetic chemicals do not naturally break down and can accumulate in the environment and human body over time, raising concerns about long-term exposure among firefighters who wear the gear during training, emergency responses and other routine job duties.

Turnout Gear Risks

The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) and the Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association issued a warning in 2022, calling for firefighters to limit their use of turnout gear as much as possible to reduce their PFAS exposure.

The groups warned that firefighters cannot fully eliminate PFAS cancer risks as long as the chemicals remain in protective gear and other firefighting equipment. They urged manufacturers and regulators to accelerate the development and widespread adoption of PFAS-free alternatives.

In the wake of those warnings, several firefighter turnout gear lawsuits have been filed throughout the federal court system, indicating that manufacturers knew, or should have known, about the risk of using PFAS in turnout gear contributing to firefighter cancer rates, which are some of the highest of any profession.

Firefighter Turnout Gear Lawsuits Consolidation

A request for consolidation of all PFAS turnout gear lawsuits was filed by the city of Rochester with the JPML on May 11.

The city indicates there are at least five firefighter turnout gear lawsuits filed across three federal district courts. Three of those cases, including the city’s own lawsuit, have been brought in the District of Minnesota, as well as one in the Northern District of California and another in the District of Montana. The motion to transfer (PDF) calls for the litigation to be consolidated in the District of Minnesota.

“Centralization of the Related Actions will prevent conflicting pretrial rulings and conserve judicial resources on identical pre-trial issues including those on the pleadings, merits discovery, expert discovery, and trial preparation issues. In particular, the pleading and discovery conducted in each of the Related Actions will likely be very similar and will likely involve many of the same or similar documents and witnesses.”

– City of Rochester, New York

If the JPML agrees, the lawsuits would be centralized before one judge for coordinated discovery, pretrial proceedings and, potentially, the selection of a group of representative cases to undergo case-specific discovery in preparation for bellwether test cases designed to see how juries respond to evidence and testimony likely to be repeated throughout the litigation.

AFFF Lawsuits

In August 2025, U.S. District Judge Richard M. Gergel asked the JPML to wrap all firefighter turnout gear lawsuits into an existing PFAS MDL that he has been overseeing in the federal District of South Carolina since 2018. However, the panel has not yet done so.

Chemical companies already face more than 15,000 lawsuits claiming that they have used PFAS in aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), which is used to put out petroleum fires. This has allegedly resulted in widespread water contamination and individual exposures that could cause various forms of cancer and other adverse health problems including:

• Testicular Cancer
• Kidney Cancer
• Liver Cancer
• Thyroid Cancer
• Thyroid Disease (Hypothyroidism or Hyperthyroidism)
• Ulcerative Colitis

These claims include allegations brought by firefighters directly exposed to AFFF during training or response exercises, as well as PFAS water contamination lawsuits filed by individuals exposed to tainted tap water caused by the chemicals, particularly around military bases, airports and other firefighter training locations.

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