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TUCSON - A University of Arizona researcher has been awarded more than $1,000,000 and the goal is to prevent injuries among fire fighters.

35,000 fire fighters are injured every year in the U.S. when responding to calls.

Jeff Burgess, a professor at the U of A, is doing a study around the world hoping to lower that number.

"The idea is to find fire departments that have a particular good record in terms of having low injuries for certain types of processes say working at the fire ground, training and so on."

Then figure out how they do that and share the information with fire departments around the world.

North West Fire Battalion Chief Mike Duncan traveled with Burgess to some of the countries like Australia and the U.K.. 15 fire stations are participating in the study including ones in Canada and Japan and several in the U.S.

Not only will the work help protect his fire fighters the results will protect your home.

Because when a fire fighter is badly injured, "We have to redirect resources from our primary mission, which is most likely putting out the house fire, to now directing to saving our own," says Duncan.

One interesting example they found in Australia:

"The fire department in Melbourne has taken all of their equipment off the roof of their fire trucks. So no one really is allowed to go up there."

That means they're less likely to suffer a fall or have heavy equipment fall on them.

Burgess wants to help fire fighters because they put themselves at risk helping all of us.

They expect to have the results of the study in the fall of 2012.