New York – According to Wowt.com, 23 people suffered injuries in New York City when a city bus and a fire truck collided. Reports indicate that the truck had its sirens on and lights flashing. The victims included the driver of the bus and firefighters. The fire truck was responding to an emergency in the […]
New York – According to Wowt.com, 23 people suffered injuries in New York City when a city bus and a fire truck collided. Reports indicate that the truck had its sirens on and lights flashing.
The victims included the driver of the bus and firefighters.
The fire truck was responding to an emergency in the Tremont neighborhood at the time of the crash. The bus pulled into the path of the fire truck. The window nearest to the bus driver shattered and sent debris flying into the roadway.
The crash is being investigated. Police have not yet filed charges in connection to the crash.
Fire trucks are involved in about 30,000 crashes every year, and some of these collisions are fatal. Vehicle collisions are the second leading cause of firefighter deaths and lead to about 20 to 25 percent of all on-duty firefighter fatalities. The only thing that causes more firefighter fatalities than traffic accidents is “stress and overexertion,” which causes about 50 percent of all on-duty deaths. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), firefighters put themselves at greater risk by failing to use seatbelts when responding to emergencies. Not wearing a seatbelt greatly increases the risk of injuries and deaths, especially in the event of rollover crashes. Although the regulations and guidelines for firefighters are meant to improve safety and encourage firefighters to take the time to use their restraints, the efforts have not been successful. One possible way to improve firefighter safety would be to design better seatbelts on fire trucks that would fasten more easily and account for the differences in firefighter’s sizes.