Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) for Wisconsin: Volunteer Fire Chief Dies from Injuries Received When Privately Owned Vehicle Crashes into Bay Door Pinning Him Against Fire Tanker

摘要

On July 23, 2008, a 76-year-old male volunteer Fire Chief (the victim) was fatally injured after being pinned between a bay door and a parked fire tanker when a pickup truck, unexpectedly, crashed into the bay door. The victim and fire department members had just returned from a structure fire and were in the process of refilling tankers when the victim went inside the fire station to write the fire report. Several fire fighters noticed an Assistant Chiefs pickup truck blocking the bay door for one of their tankers. After receiving permission, a fire fighter wearing his bunker pants and wet, rubber fire boots, backed the pickup truck at an angle to the adjacent bay, and was pulling forward when it accelerated suddenly. The pickup truck struck the bay door causing it to cave inward pinning the victim against a parked tanker. The victim was quickly removed from between the tanker and bay door, and taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. Key contributing factors identified in this investigation include operating a vehicle while wearing wet, rubber fire boots; parking vehicles in a non-designated parking area, and lack of program oversight for privately owned vehicles used as emergency response vehicles. NIOSH investigators concluded that, in order to minimize the risk of similar occurrences, fire departments should: (1) consider developing and implementing a policy prohibiting the wearing of rubber fire boots while operating a vehicle; (2) consider designating parking areas for vehicles. Additionally, fire departments and municipalities should establish program oversight and vehicle inspection procedures for privately owned vehicles used in emergency response.