Overview

• New federal guidance allows voluntary, fit-tested N95 use on clean-shaven faces and limits respirators to models approved by NIOSH.
• Roughly 80,000 N95 masks have been stockpiled and will be included in the standard equipment set on large fires.
• Masks are still barred during arduous fire-line work over overheating concerns, and the agency is evaluating technology to permit use under strenuous conditions.
• An NFPA emergency rule now permits certification of facial coverings that offer more protection than bandannas but are not sealed respirators, opening a path for filtered gaiters and similar gear.
• The California workplace-safety regulator circulated a draft rule that would require half- or full-face respirators and regular lung-function testing for wildland firefighters, including contractors.