Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Report for Michigan: Female Firefighter Dies When Struck by an Out-of-Control Pickup Truck on an Icy Interstate Highway

摘要

On January 7, 2006, a 34-year-old female firefighter was critically injured after being struck by a pickup truck that had lost control on an icy interstate highway. The fire department responded after being coded as a first call response by 911 dispatch that an accident had taken place on a local highway with occupants trapped. An engine was dispatched with three firefighters, the engine driver, lieutenant and the decedent. The incident occurred near a freeway entrance ramp. The entrance ramp was blocked by a car and pickup truck that had been involved in an accident at the ramp junction with the highway. The lieutenant and the decedent exited the engine and walked on the side of the freeway to the accident site while the engine driver repositioned the engine. As they were walking, a pickup lost control on black ice that had formed on the highway surface. The pickup slid out of control and struck the decedent. She was thrown off the highway shoulder onto the grass bank alongside the highway. Other emergency vehicles responded and she was transported to a local hospital. She died one week later from her injuries. After the incident, the fire department developed a standard operating procedure (SOP) for emergency response on roadways.