September 26, 2012
Vol 14
July 13, 2011
No 39
Vol 13 No 28
A Central County Fire and Rescue ladder truck was struck on I-70 for the second time in less than a year.
Ladder Truck Down By Shelly A. Schneider
IN this Issue
Central County Fire and Rescue has shipped one of two ladder trucks back to the manufacturer in Appleton, Wis. Assistant Chief Steve Brown said the truck was departing the scene of a car crash when it was struck from behind. “A driver who fell asleep at the wheel drove his car into the fire truck at 11:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 15,” Brown said. “Fortunately, the driver hit the truck while it was moving – probably going 20 or 25 mph. If the ladder truck had been stopped, the driver would have been killed.” The ladder truck sustained approximately $80,000 in damage, and will be out of service for four months. “We’ll use a pumper truck, but we’ll rely heavily on our neighbors,” Brown said. “We need two ladder trucks.” CCFR covers 76 square miles and more than 92,000 in population. One ladder truck was positioned on the east side of the district, and one on the west. They are needed, Brown said, because of the types of buildings in the fire protection district, including multi-story residential structures. “We surround the city of St. Charles on the north and south side, and cover west to the T.R. Hughes overpass,” Brown said. “It’s quite a bit of area Last year we ran more than 6,000 calls in emergency services. About 50 percent are EMS related, and about 10 percent are rescue, which would include motor vehicle crashes and extrication.” Brown said he no longer calls them “car accidents.” “They are motor vehicle crashes,” he said. “This wasn’t an act of God. It’s someone not paying attention, or driving impaired. It may be unintentional, but it definitely wasn’t an accident. We’ve been very fortunate that none of our personnel have been hurt in these (crashes).” Despite firefighters following all national safety recommendations and regulations, the truck was struck and
Photo by Ray Rockwell
severely damaged. Chief Russ Mason said the driver of the car suffered only minor injuries. “The driver who hit the fire truck in January lost his life in the crash,” Mason said. According to the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) vehicle collisions claimed 253 firefighter lives and another 70 firefighters were lost as a result of being struck by a vehicle from 1996 to 2010. These situations are not only dangerous for firefighters; a Department of Transportation (DOT) report found that approximately 18 percent of all traffic fatalities in the U.S. are a result of secondary collisions. These are collisions that occur as a result of distraction or congestion from a prior incident. Fire trucks are typically positioned at accidents to help protect accident victims and emergency responders from oncoming traffic. “In the case of these accidents, the fire truck that was hit protected other emergency responders from being struck,” Mason said. “We need the help of our residents to keep themselves and our
Around Town . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8 Lincoln County Life . . . . . . . . . . . 9 School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11 Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-13
firefighters safe on the road.” Mason recommended that when drivers come upon an accident scene they: • Slow down • Stay alert • Focus on the road • Avoid using cell phones • Look for personnel directing traffic,
and tending to the accident scene • Stop when directed to stop, do not slowly coast • Do not make any sudden movements • Do not stare at the accident scene or flashing lights while the vehicle is in motion
MOVIE PEEK
Learn & Play / Pet Adoptions . . . . Movie / Historic Streets . . . . . . . . Joe Morice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shelly Schneider / Recipe . . . . . .
See MOVIE page 15
“Trouble with the Curve” - Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
14 15 16 17
Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 What’s Happening . . . . . . . . . . . 20-21 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-23
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