[Biomonitoring of military firefighters working in Brumadinho/MG, Brazil, after the breakdown of the tailing dam].

Abstract

In January 2019, the state of Minas Gerais was struck by an environmental tragedy resulting from the collapse of the Córrego do Feijão Mine Dam, in Brumadinho. On this occasion, the Military Fire Brigade of the State of Rio de Janeiro (CBMERJ) designated specialized teams for emergency intervention, in aid of agents from the local corporation involved in providing care and support to victims and residents of the affected areas. However, these professionals were exposed to mud containing substances that cause harm to health. The objective of this study was to describe the concentrations of inorganic elements in the biological samples of Military Firefighters who participated in the actions after the collapse of the tailings dam in Brumadinho. To this end, a cross-sectional descriptive observational study was carried out. All samples contained levels above reference values, except for Mg, Al and Ca, which indicates excessive exposure. Even using personal protective equipment, which is a standard and mandatory procedure for the corporation, these professionals were exposed to high amounts of different contaminants and this biomonitoring aimed to expand health surveillance actions, however, in isolation, they cannot predict the occurrence of a certain pathology.