San Francisco, California AFFF Lawsuit Help Center

AFFF Exposure in San Francisco: Understanding Your Potential Legal Options

Aqueous film-forming foam, commonly called AFFF, has been used to control fires involving aviation fuel, gasoline, petroleum products, and other flammable liquids. For many years, specialized firefighting foam was part of emergency-response operations, aviation safety, fire training, industrial fire protection, and certain military activities.

People who encountered AFFF were not necessarily the firefighters who sprayed it. Airport personnel, aircraft mechanics, fuel handlers, maintenance workers, emergency responders, contractors, and other employees could come into contact with the foam while participating in training, inspecting suppression systems, repairing equipment, or cleaning after a discharge.

Some older AFFF formulations contained PFAS chemicals, including PFOA and PFOS. Certain PFAS compounds are persistent and can remain in environmental settings and the human body for extended periods.

If you were exposed to AFFF in San Francisco, elsewhere in California, or during military service and later developed a serious illness, your individual circumstances may warrant a confidential legal review.

REQUEST A FREE, CONFIDENTIAL CASE REVIEW

There is no cost to request an initial review, and discussing your potential exposure does not obligate you to file a lawsuit.

AFFF Exposure Could Happen in Many Different Ways

AFFF exposure was not necessarily connected to a major fire.

Fire-suppression equipment has historically required routine inspections, system testing, maintenance, repairs, and training. Workers may also encounter residual foam while cleaning vehicles, equipment, protective clothing, or work areas following a discharge.

Potential exposure situations may include:

• Participating in firefighter training exercises
• Responding to aircraft or fuel-related emergencies
• Testing foam-suppression systems
• Filling, draining, or servicing foam tanks
• Repairing pumps, hoses, valves, and delivery equipment
• Maintaining firefighting vehicles
• Cleaning apparatus following foam deployment
• Handling protective gear after a foam discharge
• Working around aircraft fueling areas
• Inspecting fire-suppression equipment
• Cleaning facilities or equipment following an AFFF release

For older exposure histories, identifying the exact product may be difficult. Employment records, training documentation, military histories, and former workplace records may help establish where and when exposure occurred.

What Is AFFF?

AFFF is a specialized firefighting foam designed primarily to combat fires involving flammable liquids. It can spread across the surface of burning fuel, helping suppress vapors, cool the material, and reduce the risk of reignition.

Some historical AFFF products incorporated PFAS chemicals because of their ability to resist heat, water, oil, and degradation.

PFOA and PFOS are among the PFAS compounds that have been extensively studied. However, AFFF formulations changed over time, so products used at different facilities and during different periods may have contained different chemical compositions.

A potential exposure evaluation may therefore consider the product involved, location, time period, job duties, frequency of contact, and available records.

San Francisco-Area Settings Where AFFF Exposure May Be Relevant

San Francisco's aviation, maritime, emergency-response, transportation, and industrial environment creates several possible contexts for historical AFFF exposure.

San Francisco Firefighters and Emergency Responders

Firefighters may have encountered AFFF during specialized training and emergency responses involving flammable liquids.

Contact could also occur through routine maintenance. Foam residue may remain on fire apparatus, hoses, protective clothing, floors, and other equipment after deployment.

For former firefighters, previous departments, assignments, training locations, and years of service may help reconstruct potential exposure.

Airport and Aviation Personnel

Aircraft rescue and firefighting operations have historically used specialized foam because aviation fuel fires can present significant challenges.

Potentially exposed workers may include:

• Aircraft rescue firefighters
• Airport emergency personnel
• Aircraft mechanics
• Fuel handlers
• Maintenance crews
• Hangar employees
• Fire-system technicians
• Contractors
• Aviation training personnel

Exposure could occur during emergency responses, drills, equipment testing, inspections, repairs, or cleanup.

Maritime and Port Workers

AFFF has also been used in certain environments where fuel and other flammable materials create specialized fire risks.

Depending on their duties, maritime workers, maintenance personnel, emergency responders, contractors, and other port-related employees may have encountered firefighting foam during equipment testing, emergencies, maintenance, or cleanup.

The particular facility and historical equipment used can be important when evaluating potential exposure.

Military Personnel and Veterans

A San Francisco resident's relevant AFFF exposure may have occurred outside California.

Military firefighters, aviation crews, aircraft mechanics, fuel handlers, maintenance workers, and crash-response teams may have encountered AFFF at military installations or training facilities.

A complete military service history may therefore help identify potential exposure locations.

Industrial and Maintenance Workers

Specialized fire-suppression systems may be used at facilities where fuel, petroleum products, chemicals, or other combustible materials are stored or handled.

Workers and contractors may encounter AFFF during inspections, system testing, maintenance, repairs, emergency response, and cleanup.

Mechanics, electricians, maintenance technicians, equipment specialists, and contractors may have relevant exposure histories even if they never worked as firefighters.

Who May Want an AFFF Exposure Review?

A potential review may be appropriate for someone who previously:

• Handled, mixed, sprayed, or transported AFFF
• Worked as a firefighter
• Participated in specialized firefighting drills
• Responded to aircraft or fuel fires
• Worked around aircraft-rescue equipment
• Maintained foam tanks or suppression systems
• Repaired pumps, hoses, valves, or related equipment
• Cleaned vehicles or protective equipment after foam use
• Worked around aviation fuel operations
• Worked in a maritime, industrial, or transportation facility using specialized foam
• Experienced repeated foam leaks, spills, or releases
• Lived or worked near a location associated with historical PFAS use
• Used water potentially affected by an AFFF release
• Later developed a serious medical condition following potential exposure

An occupation or diagnosis by itself does not establish eligibility. The circumstances of exposure, medical history, employment records, military service, and applicable law may all need to be evaluated.

San Francisco Firefighters and First Responders

Firefighters may have encountered AFFF through emergency response, training, equipment testing, and post-incident cleanup.

Repeated contact may come from routine responsibilities rather than one significant event. Maintaining apparatus, servicing foam systems, handling hoses, and cleaning protective gear after a discharge may all be relevant.

Former firefighters may want to preserve information about previous departments, assignments, specialized training, and years of service.

Aviation, Fuel, and Maintenance Workers

AFFF exposure does not require someone to have worked directly as a firefighter.

Aircraft mechanics, fuel-service workers, airport contractors, hangar employees, maintenance crews, and emergency-response personnel may have worked around foam equipment or in areas where AFFF was discharged.

Training, inspections, repairs, system testing, and cleanup can all be relevant when documenting potential occupational exposure.

Industrial, Maritime, and Contract Workers

AFFF exposure may also involve people working in support positions.

Maintenance technicians, mechanics, electricians, cleaning crews, equipment specialists, and contractors may have worked around specialized fire-suppression systems.

The nature of the work, length of employment, location, and frequency of contact may be important when evaluating an individual's potential exposure.

Could PFAS From AFFF Affect Drinking Water?

Certain PFAS compounds can remain in the environment following historical AFFF releases. Under some conditions, they may migrate through soil and groundwater and potentially reach nearby water sources.

This can raise questions about drinking-water exposure near locations where firefighting foam was historically used.

However, finding PFAS in water does not automatically establish the contamination source or prove that an individual's illness was caused by that exposure.

An environmental evaluation may involve water-testing results, groundwater records, historical site information, environmental investigations, and evidence concerning possible sources.

FIND OUT WHETHER YOUR EXPOSURE HISTORY MAY DESERVE A REVIEW

A confidential evaluation can help identify potentially relevant employment, military, environmental, and medical records.

Medical Conditions Being Studied in PFAS Research

Research into PFAS exposure and human health continues. Scientific studies and federal health agencies have reported associations between certain PFAS compounds and particular health outcomes.

An association does not automatically establish that PFAS caused an individual's illness.

A potential AFFF claim may therefore require examining the diagnosis alongside exposure history, medical records, scientific evidence, timing, and other potential risk factors.

Kidney Cancer

PFOA exposure has been studied in connection with kidney cancer. Someone diagnosed with kidney cancer who also has a history of potential AFFF exposure may want to have their circumstances evaluated.

A review may consider where the exposure occurred, duration and frequency of contact, timing of diagnosis, treatment history, and other potential risk factors.

A diagnosis alone does not establish that AFFF caused the cancer.

Testicular Cancer

Testicular cancer has also been investigated in connection with PFOA exposure and has been alleged in PFAS-related litigation.

Whether an individual diagnosis may support an AFFF-related claim depends on the available exposure evidence, medical history, scientific information, and applicable legal standards.

Other Health Conditions

Researchers have examined additional cancers and health outcomes in connection with different PFAS compounds. The strength of available evidence may differ depending on the particular chemical and medical condition.

For that reason, a serious diagnosis should be evaluated together with the individual's actual exposure history rather than assuming that every illness automatically qualifies for an AFFF lawsuit.

What Compensation Could Potentially Be Pursued?

When supported by the facts and applicable law, an AFFF personal-injury claim may potentially seek damages for:

• Medical bills and healthcare expenses
• Hospitalization and surgery
• Prescription medications
• Rehabilitation and continuing care
• Future medical treatment
• Lost wages
• Reduced earning capacity
• Physical pain and suffering
• Emotional distress
• Diminished quality of life
• Loss of companionship or support
• Funeral and burial expenses in qualifying wrongful-death cases
• Other damages permitted under applicable law

The potential value of a claim varies based on the individual's circumstances. The severity of the illness, medical expenses, lost income, evidence of exposure, causation, and applicable law may all influence potential damages.

No specific settlement, verdict, or compensation amount can be guaranteed.

Preserve Your AFFF Exposure History

If you believe you encountered AFFF in San Francisco, elsewhere in California, or during employment or military service in another location, older records may still be useful.

Employment documents, military records, training histories, medical files, former workplace information, environmental reports, and water-testing results may help establish when and where potential exposure occurred.

REQUEST A FREE, CONFIDENTIAL CASE REVIEW

Requesting an evaluation does not obligate you to pursue litigation. Your potential legal options depend on your individual exposure history, medical circumstances, available evidence, and the law applicable to your claim.