Pomona auxiliary firefighter Trevor Landsdown, diagnosed with occupational cancer, is pushing to have deaths from the job’s health impacts recognised and honoured as line-of-duty.
Trevor began his firefighting career in Victoria in November 1982. Just 16 days after his 16th birthday in 1983, he was on the frontlines of the Ash Wednesday bushfires, which claimed 75 lives and destroyed more than 3000 buildings.
“Out of that little volunteer station that I started with, there were about 20 to 25 firefighters active in that fire. I know over 40 per cent of those people from that station have dealt with cancer, are dealing with cancer, and three of them have passed away from cancer,” Trevor said.
In the early 2000s, Trevor trained at the former Fiskville facility, later revealed to have exposed firefighters to toxic chemicals.
A 2016 parliamentary inquiry, where Trevor gave testimony, confirmed that dozens of firefighters who worked and trained there developed cancers linked to chemical exposure.
Testing at the Fiskville site found concentrations of PFAS chemicals were up to 12 times higher than those recommended by international safety guidelines. The site was permanently closed in 2015.
“When I walked away from that, I just looked at my wife and said, ‘It’s not a case of if, it’s a case of what and when,’” Trevor said.
His colleague Brad Waterhouse became widely known as the “poster boy” of the 2009 Victorian bushfires (Black Saturday) and died of cancer in 2017 at just 45.
“The picture that went viral on the front page of every newspaper virtually in the world was of Brad on his knees with his hands in his face,” Trevor said.
“We worked together and spent a lot of time together over the years. His death was a pretty big shock and resonates pretty hard in our family and our life to this day, losing Brad.”
Now, Trevor is determined to protect the next generation, including his son Lachlan, from facing the same risks.
“My father and grandfather and generations of my family have been involved in the fire service, so I was kind of forced into it,” he joked.
“A lot of what I try and do now is work with the young people coming up in the service and try to ensure that they don’t end up in the same place I did and other people did,” Trevor said.
His advocacy has also inspired colleagues, with Pomona firefighters recently taking on the 2025 Rhapsody Resort Stair Climb Challenge to raise funds for the Firefighters Cancer Foundation Australia.
The winning team comprised of Jimmy Wilkins, Owen Langley and Marcus Gray, who were awarded the Commissioner’s Cup.
Jimmy said, “Seeing how excited and proud Trevor was of us for that win was a pretty special moment.”
“Learning from him and all the knowledge he’s been able to gain because he’s been diagnosed with it, really does open up your eyes and make you realise how much support the people that have been diagnosed with it need, and their families as well.
“Most firefighters are pretty competitive and love a bit of fitness, so it was something that we all wanted to do to raise money to help families. The added extra challenge of racing 41 floors in our gear excites you.”
A second team of firefighters from the Sunshine Coast, including Pomona auxiliary firefighter Janaya Guerin, came closely behind in second place. Janaya was joined on the team by Ken Hansen and Benjamin McDonald.
Between the two teams they raised more than $8300 to support firefighters living with occupational cancer.
Proudly cheering them on was Trevor, who was diagnosed with a terminal cancer called Myeloma in 2018.
“I really felt them turning up on the day was probably a show of support for me as much as anything else. So it was a bit emotional to see them all there at the end of the day,” Trevor said.
Myeloma, also known as multiple myeloma, is a type of blood cancer affecting the plasma cells in the bone marrow.
While incurable, it can be managed with treatments like immunotherapy and stem cell transplants, which is what Trevor underwent, with remission periods possible.
Since 2015, Queensland legislation has deemed certain cancers to be work-related for firefighters. In August 2024, Queensland Parliament passed amendments to expand the scope of cancers and Queensland now has the most comprehensive Workers’ Compensation scheme for firefighters in Australia. Eleven more cancers have been added to the list of presumptive illnesses, which now covers 22 types of cancer.
The list now includes reproductive cancers in women, an important addition as more women volunteer and take up careers in firefighting.
As Trevor worked in both Victoria and Queensland, he initially did not meet the criteria to qualify for occupational cancer.
With the help of lawyer Leeha James and the Firefighters Cancer Foundation Australia, Trevor was able to prove the cancer was 75 per cent from Victoria and 25 per cent from Queensland, with Queensland accepting 100 per cent liability.
“So that outcome set a precedent for anyone in the future in the same situation,” Trevor said.
This type of legislation originated in Canada and the US as part of a global drive to improve the health of firefighters.
Trevor said, “In America, when a firefighter dies from an occupational cancer, it’s classified as a line of duty death. In Australia, cancer and health issues from firefighting aren’t treated as line of duty deaths. I would really like to see that changed.”
“I think it’s important that this is done because people have got to understand the exposure that these men and women are putting themselves through. And the risks they’re putting themselves at.”
Trevor said firefighters can reduce their risk by following safety procedures such as: no PPE in vehicles, showering within the hour, cleaning gear regularly, using a station washing machine with an extra rinse cycle, and attending regular GP checkups.
For more information on the Firefighters Cancer Foundation Australia visit www.fcfa.org.au
