Week 2: LODD – Apparatus Ejection

Review the NIOSH – F2012-23: Volunteer Fire Fighter Dies After Being Ejected From Front Seat of Engine—Virginia   report.

Did the conclusions in this report offer recommendations for future prevention of similar incidents? What relation did established regulations and standards have to the events surrounding the fatality?

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#1

Did the conclusions in this report offer recommendations for future prevention of similar incidents? What relation did established regulations and standards have to the events surrounding the fatality?

The report from NIOSH covered all aspects of the crash thoroughly. They did include their recommendation for future preventions. In this incident, a fire engine was in route to a call when it lost control and the right wheel left the pavement. This caused the driver to lose control of the truck resulting in the crash. The passenger was ejected from the truck ending in a fatality.

So NIOSH broke the incident down into two main factors, resulting in the crash. The first was the driver and loss control of the truck. Now if you are in this line of work, we have all been in that situation where there was a “pucker” factor while operating a motor vehicle at a high rate of speed. We all have gotten amped up when responding to a hot call. In this situation the driver had experience operating the truck and some training. There were no known problems with the unit and none reported. NIOSH did recommend that all Fire departments should provide and ensure all drivers successfully complete a comprehensive driver’s training program, such as NFPA 1451 Standard for a Fire Service Vehicle Operations Training Program, before allowing a member to drive and operate a fire department vehicle (NIOSH 2013). That fire departments ensure their personnel are trained in maintaining vehicle control. They recommend all vehicles are checked regularly and maintained. recorded.

The second part is the passenger not secured by a seat belt. While the crash played a big part, not using their seat belt is main reason for the fatality. If the passenger was wearing his seat belt his chance of survival would have been tremendously higher. The NHTSA stated, “the national use rate was at 89.6% in 2018. Seat belt use in passenger vehicles saved an estimated 14,955 lives in 2017. Of the 37,133 people killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2017, 47% were not wearing seat belts (NHTSA 2018).

NIOSH recommend all fire departments should ensure that written standard operating procedures (SOPs) regarding seat belt use are established and enforced (NISOH 2013). That training is put in place for all personnel understand the guidelines of the SOP regarding the use of safety restraints.   

[email protected](2019, July 17). Seat Belts. Retrieved August 13, 2019, from https://www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/seat-belts

#2

This forum is one of the biggest and careless thing we got used to doing because we are always in the zone and getting ready for the call that we don?t temper the simple and safe think to do and buckle up. And I?m one of the ones that usually always forgets especlity once I became a captain and worry about my crew and game planning the situation and how we are goin fro attack it. But as time went by and truck advancing with the alarms that tell you who doesn?t have there seatson and the siren goes on the whole until you get off. And most of the time because we are getting dress on the way because everyone wants to be first on scene to handle the call beat the other companies out.

In conclusion, the recommendations as always a good base to start off with but depending where you are located my need to add other steps. Like for example while station in Alaska we had to get to driving on ice, snow and muddy areas throughout the year which makes responding a little more stressful. And like the time at Portugal we had to deal with flooded area and cliffed edge road and dirt roads and cattle on the road. So training your personnel to environment is the best I learned to have a more successful and least accident situation while driving. But also there was time in Germany when we went from station to station we had to get onto the autobahn and maintain with traffic and being young military firefighters on autobahn in a fire truck. And in my career I had experience drivers/lieutenant that would leave the bay until everyone buckles. But I also notice the best way to get everyone to buckle is to be the role model as the captain and lead by example and your crew will usually follow suite. And our guys must remember our safety first before we can help and save someone or there?s property. And the pledge is a great way to spread the importance of the cause safety of our guys.