On February 24, 2017, a 52-year-old male volunteer fire fighter died after being ejected from the fire department’s pickup truck. The pickup truck was transporting 3 fire fighters from a volunteer fire department to State Fire School training. The vehicle was traveling in adverse road and driving conditions due to a wintery mix of rain, snow, and ice. Approximately 117 miles from their station, a patch of ice/snow caused the driver to lose control of the vehicle on a four-lane divided highway. The pickup truck slid off the right side of the pavement hitting a soft grassy shoulder which pitched the truck into a roll. It rolled 2-3 times before coming to a stop on its roof (see Photo page i). The fire fighter sitting in the rear seat was not wearing his safety belt and was ejected through the driver’s side rear seat window which was shattered during the roll. Both the driver and the other fire fighter sitting in the front seat were wearing their safety belts. The driver sustained significant bruising while the other fire fighter suffered only minor abrasions. After exiting the vehicle from the shattered driver’s side rear seat window, they located the unresponsive ejected fire fighter and noted his agonal respirations and a weak peripheral pulse. The driver started cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) while a passerby called 9-1-1. The driver and other fire fighter took turns performing CPR until other emergency personnel arrived. Despite CPR and other medical treatment provided by both fire fighters involved in the crash and responding emergency personnel, the fire fighter was pronounced dead at the scene due to head trauma. The driver was transported to the nearest emergency department for evaluation. After being evaluated and treated for bruising, the driver was released that evening. The other fire fighter in the front seat suffered minor abrasions. He refused treatment on scene, but accompanied the Driver in the ambulance to the emergency department.
Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Report: Volunteer Fire Fighter Dies After Being Ejected From Rear Seat of Fire Department Pickup Truck – Iowa, FACE-F2017-07
2019
25 pages
Report
Keine Angabe
Englisch
Job Training & Career Development , Education, Law, & Humanities , Fire Services, Law Enforcement, & Criminal Justice , Emergency Services & Planning , Police, Fire, & Emergency Services , Transportation Safety , Human Resources , Protective Equipment , Health Care Needs & Demands , Public Health & Industrial Medicine , Fire fighters , Fire fighting equipment , Emergency response , Safety practices , Injuries , Injury prevention , Accident prevention , Accident analysis , Accidents , Traumatic injuries , Motor vehicles , Climatic conditions , Climatic factors , Drivers , Safety belts , Fatalities , Head injuries , Cardiopulmonary system , Road surfacing , Automobile safety , Motor vehicle parts , Policy , Compliance , Training , Safety education , Safety monitoring , Control systems , Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE)