Injured By Tools In Cab?

[x635 4,066]

I was wondering if anyone has heard of any incident where a firefighter has been injured by a tool or other object in the cab of the apparatus?

It seems to me as we carry more and more, if we don't securely and safely mount tools in the cab, we're putting ourselves at risk.

[Guest partyrock]

There is a reason why companies will not ship apperatus unless everything is secured and bolted down. Luckily I haven't seen anyone get hurt yet, but I have seen an officers tool imbeded in the front windshield. There's enough ways to die on this job all ready.

[Guest]

most companies I know of keep tools at their feet ...so no

[RWC130 594]

Remember to secure YOURSELF too!

[mstrang1 213]

I cannot find it now, but I remember in 1990, 2 firefighters from Waterbury CT, FD were killed in a MVA, while sitting in the jump seats of an open cab engine. I believe one of them took an axe to the face. Maybe Izzy knows more, he lives up that way.

[Guest]

I dont like loose tools in the cab. We've all been to MVA's and seen how items fly around when a vehical rolls over. I would not want to be in there with our tools flying around. We had an engine with the brakes not releasing completely and overheating. The mechanic found a ball point pen wedged under the brake pedal preventing it from completly releasing. Even small tools can be a problem.

[IzzyEng4 427]

I cannot find it now, but I remember in 1990, 2 firefighters from Waterbury CT, FD were killed in a MVA, while sitting in the jump seats of an open cab engine.  I believe one of them took an axe to the face.  Maybe Izzy knows more, he lives up that way.

←

That was a riding accident. What happened was Engine 11 was in a spare piece and 1970's / 80's Hahn pumper and the breaks failed. You have the driver and the officer up front, a rider sitting in the left jump seat and one rider sitting in the right jump seat and if memory serves me right a firefighter standing in the jump seat open cab access. But also it may have been the third firefighter was sitting in the middle seat up front. They were coming down the hill, the truck lost it breaks and the driver maneuvered the pumper into a parking lot to miss traffic. The truck hit a tree and threw the standing firefighter from the truck and I can't remember if the officer of the right side jump seat firefighter died, due to the truck hitting the tree at that point. I believe it was the right jump seat rider who passed. I'll have to see if I can find an archive of the story. The incident had nothing to do with loose tools.

But a the next town over from me, their old rescue truck rolled over back in the early 90's when going to a call. I forget the whole story but what I do know is that there were a driver and rider up front in the cab and there were originally 2 firefighters in the back walk in portion of the truck, but when a driver came for an engine at that house, they got off the truck and rode the engine in. When the rescue rolled, even tough the equipment was secured, the inertia from the roll threw everything around (irons, hand tools, SCBA's, ect.) and if some one was in the back of the truck would have definitely been seriously hurt and possibly killed in the accident just from the equipment being thrown around. Thankfully the two guys in the front of the truck were not hurt.

Edited March 21, 2007 by IzzyEng4

[ltjay157 10]

In my dept, we have some tools in the cab ie can, irons, hooks, but they are secured by either cabinets or straps designed to hold them. The one item that ticks me off is we don't use the retensions straps on the seats to hold the SCBA. Their reasoning is if it's strapped, the firefighters can't get it on quick. It takes 2 seconds to undo when you pull up on scene. I've had on SCBA fall out of the bracket after a hard stop. Go figure

[Guest]

Check www.firefighterclosecalls.com. I read at least one instance where a pike that was mounted horizontally on the extertior of an engine actually came through one of those small windows on the rear wall of the cab....during a panic stop.

[Remember585 815]

Can anyone say:

NFPA 1901?!

I also have seen tools laying in apparatus, personally, I don't like it. I feel that anything in that cab is a projectile waiting to happen should a collision occur. Our apparatus all have some form of equipment in them, and in all of them it is secured one way or another. If it isn't then GOD FORBID you have a collision, look out for flying tools!

[Guest alsfirefighter]

Seth....look up information on Texas City, TX FD Engine 33's accident. The Captain was killed after being ejected from through the passenger window (wear your seatbelts gang) and if I remember correctly the driver was critical the rear firefighter was minor and the 2 of them both got hit with objects from the cab.

585, right on top of it again! NFPA 1901 address this and if you mount tools in your cab your taking severe risk and they have to be secured with specific NFPA compliant hardware. The problem is everything else that also accumalates in our cabs particulary between the dash and windshield. It shouldn't be too difficult to figure out that this is a risk when they came out with harnesses to keep unoccupied SCBA's in their seats.

[Oswegowind 17]

what about in the ambulance...there is always free tools...not a sharp or heavy as firefighting tools, but just as dangerous! Still no national standards for them yet!