The Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP) is administered by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), part of the Center for Disease Controland Prevention (CDC). It performs independent investigations of firefighter fatalities in the United States, also referred to as line of duty deaths (LODD). The programs goals are: 1.) to better define the characteristics of line of duty deaths among firefighters, 2.) to develop recommendations for the prevention of deaths and injuries, and 3.) to disseminate prevention strategies to the fire service. In 1998, Congress funded NIOSH to implement FFFIPP recognizing the need for further efforts to address the continuing national problem of occupational fire fighter fatalities--an estimated 105 each y