Citation

Braddee R. Accid. Reconstr. J. 2010; 20(4): 23-26.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, Accident Reconstruction Journal)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This article reprints much of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) report on an April 2009 accident in which a 41-year-old male volunteer fire chief was fatally injured while responding to a fire alarm in the fire department's pick-up truck. The investigation of the accident involved meetings and interviews with the fire department officers, the County Sheriff's Office; telephone conversations with the State and County Road Department engineers; examination and photography of the accident site; and review of the victim's training records, vehicle maintenance log, Sheriff's Office investigative report, certificate of death, and the fire department's standard operating guidelines. The article outlines the apparatus and roadway involved in the accident, the training and experience of the fire chief (the victim), weather conditions, the investigation, and contributing factors. The NIOSH investigator identified four items as key contributing factors to this fatality: vehicle speed, wet roadway, operating the vehicle without activating the siren, and obstructed view at the intersecting roadway. The article includes detailed recommendations that address these factors, focusing on the importance of training that includes defensive driving techniques, the use of siren and lights, and the need to correct line-of-sight at the intersection where the accident happened. Full-color photographs illustrate the accident scene.