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Boston firefighter killed when truck crashes into building
By Donovan Slack, Maria Cramer, and Milton Valencia, Globe Staff
One firefighter was killed and one received life-threatening injuries when a Boston Fire Department ladder truck crashed into a building today on Huntington Avenue in the city's Mission Hill neighborhood, law enforcement officials said.
The truck barreled into the building at 835 Huntington Ave. at about 2:32 p.m. One city official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the truck may have lost its brakes as it hurtled down a steep hill.
Three other firefighters were treated for minor injuries and are in good condition at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, said hospital spokeswoman Jaime Lyons.
When the truck struck the building, it crashed into a computer lab where seven children, ages 7 to 12, were working on an after-school project, according to resident David Ramos, 46.
"Some of the kids were full of glass," said Ramos, who ran to the lab when he felt the crash reverberate through the building. "They were sitting next to the window where the impact was."
Ramos grabbed paper towels and said he helped clean up some of the children, who were bleeding with cuts from the flying debris. All of the children's injuries appeared to be minor, Ramos said.
Three children were taken to Children's Hospital with minor injuries and are expected to be released today, according to Andrea Duggan, a hospital spokeswoman.
The truck, Ladder 26, could be seen resting half-in and half-out of the lobby of building at the Mission Park complex at the corner of Parker Hill and Huntington Avenue. Ladder 26 operates with Engine 37 out of a firehouse two blocks away at 560 Huntington Avenue.
Residents were alarmed by a sudden crashing noise. “All we heard is ‘Bam! Bam!’ and that was it -- it wasn’t even that loud, it was so quick,” said Donna, a certified nursing assistant who cares for an elderly resident in a nearby building and declined to give her last name. “It was terrible because the truck went through the wall and I think it hit the building.”
The truck came down Parker Hill Road across four lanes of Huntington Avenue and through the front gate of the complex. A smashed car could also be seen pushed to the side of the gate in aerial footage broadcast by local TV stations.
Just before 4:30 p.m., firefighters lined up with their helmets over their hearts to pay honor to a fallen comraade as the body was removed from the wreckage of the crash and placed in an ambulance.
Ladder 26 was manufactured by a company called E-One. The model year is 1995 and it's a 110-foot truck with a four-door cab. The truck, which was bought new, passed its last annual safety inspection in March 2008 and a ladder inspection in September 2008, city officials said.
WHDH-TV is reporting that the truck was involved in another accident only a month ago, when it rear-ended a car in the same area on Huntington Avenue on Dec. 10.
It is one of 23 ladder trucks in the city's fleet and one of eight that are 13 years or more old. A spokeswoman for Florida-based E-One, Amanda Davis, declined to comment on the crash but said, "Our thoughts are with the department and the families."
Boston Police were trying to determine the cause of the accident. Fire officials on the scene cautioned against speculation about the cause of the crash, but truck maintenance has been an issue during ongoing contract talks between the firefighters' union and the city, as has random drug and alcohol testing of firefighters.
The Mission Park complex includes three mid-rise buildings and one high-rise apartment tower as well as 147 town houses along a system of interior streets.
The last fatal crash involving a Massachusetts firefighter occurred in 1988 in West Barnstable, according to Rita Fahy, a database manager at the National Fire Protection Association in Quincy. The firefighter killed in that crash was responding to a call for emergency medical services in a personal vehicle, Fahy said.
Between 1993 and 2007, there have been just three fatal crashes involving ladder trucks nationwide.
From her apartment on the 13th floor, Julia Gorin, 69, said she heard a noise "like a blast" and felt the entire high-rise vibrate.
In the building next door on Huntington Avenue, Sophia Nikolayerskaya thought it was "an explosion."
"Terrible," Nikolayerskaya said, shaking her head.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/01/fire_engine_cra.html?p1=Well_MostPop_Emailed2
By Donovan Slack, Maria Cramer, and Milton Valencia, Globe Staff
One firefighter was killed and one received life-threatening injuries when a Boston Fire Department ladder truck crashed into a building today on Huntington Avenue in the city's Mission Hill neighborhood, law enforcement officials said.
The truck barreled into the building at 835 Huntington Ave. at about 2:32 p.m. One city official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the truck may have lost its brakes as it hurtled down a steep hill.
Three other firefighters were treated for minor injuries and are in good condition at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, said hospital spokeswoman Jaime Lyons.
When the truck struck the building, it crashed into a computer lab where seven children, ages 7 to 12, were working on an after-school project, according to resident David Ramos, 46.
"Some of the kids were full of glass," said Ramos, who ran to the lab when he felt the crash reverberate through the building. "They were sitting next to the window where the impact was."
Ramos grabbed paper towels and said he helped clean up some of the children, who were bleeding with cuts from the flying debris. All of the children's injuries appeared to be minor, Ramos said.
Three children were taken to Children's Hospital with minor injuries and are expected to be released today, according to Andrea Duggan, a hospital spokeswoman.
The truck, Ladder 26, could be seen resting half-in and half-out of the lobby of building at the Mission Park complex at the corner of Parker Hill and Huntington Avenue. Ladder 26 operates with Engine 37 out of a firehouse two blocks away at 560 Huntington Avenue.
Residents were alarmed by a sudden crashing noise. “All we heard is ‘Bam! Bam!’ and that was it -- it wasn’t even that loud, it was so quick,” said Donna, a certified nursing assistant who cares for an elderly resident in a nearby building and declined to give her last name. “It was terrible because the truck went through the wall and I think it hit the building.”
The truck came down Parker Hill Road across four lanes of Huntington Avenue and through the front gate of the complex. A smashed car could also be seen pushed to the side of the gate in aerial footage broadcast by local TV stations.
Just before 4:30 p.m., firefighters lined up with their helmets over their hearts to pay honor to a fallen comraade as the body was removed from the wreckage of the crash and placed in an ambulance.
Ladder 26 was manufactured by a company called E-One. The model year is 1995 and it's a 110-foot truck with a four-door cab. The truck, which was bought new, passed its last annual safety inspection in March 2008 and a ladder inspection in September 2008, city officials said.
WHDH-TV is reporting that the truck was involved in another accident only a month ago, when it rear-ended a car in the same area on Huntington Avenue on Dec. 10.
It is one of 23 ladder trucks in the city's fleet and one of eight that are 13 years or more old. A spokeswoman for Florida-based E-One, Amanda Davis, declined to comment on the crash but said, "Our thoughts are with the department and the families."
Boston Police were trying to determine the cause of the accident. Fire officials on the scene cautioned against speculation about the cause of the crash, but truck maintenance has been an issue during ongoing contract talks between the firefighters' union and the city, as has random drug and alcohol testing of firefighters.
The Mission Park complex includes three mid-rise buildings and one high-rise apartment tower as well as 147 town houses along a system of interior streets.
The last fatal crash involving a Massachusetts firefighter occurred in 1988 in West Barnstable, according to Rita Fahy, a database manager at the National Fire Protection Association in Quincy. The firefighter killed in that crash was responding to a call for emergency medical services in a personal vehicle, Fahy said.
Between 1993 and 2007, there have been just three fatal crashes involving ladder trucks nationwide.
From her apartment on the 13th floor, Julia Gorin, 69, said she heard a noise "like a blast" and felt the entire high-rise vibrate.
In the building next door on Huntington Avenue, Sophia Nikolayerskaya thought it was "an explosion."
"Terrible," Nikolayerskaya said, shaking her head.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/01/fire_engine_cra.html?p1=Well_MostPop_Emailed2
