Brad Creacy served as a firefighter in the U.S. Air Force from 1974 to 1985 and then as a civilian airport firefighter until 2001. He photographed this striking series at Hahn (1977) and Sembach (1984) Air Bases in Germany. Aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) containing PFAS was used in military firefighter training exercises to extinguish fires that were intentionally ignited in pits. Brad came across the PFAS project website while researching the connection between PFAS exposure and thyroid cancer, and has kindly shared his photos with us to educate others.
You can view the photo series and learn more about the AFFF training exercise on our website, posted under the “Resources” tab.