Volunteer Fire Fighter Killed When Pressurized Water Tank Explodes During Fire Suppression at a Brush Fire – Ohio

Details

• Personal Author:
  Merinar, Timothy R. ; Moore, Paul H. ; Wertman, Stacy C.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP)
• Description:
  Death in the Line of Duty…a Summary of a NIOSH Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation
  
  On September 24, 2010, a 26-year-old male volunteer fire fighter (the victim) was killed when a pressurized 120-gallon water tank exploded during fire suppression activities at a brush fire. The water tank was mounted in the rear of the fire department's Humvee and was part of the department's portable pressurized water system used for brush and wildland fire suppression. The victim was standing near the rear of the Humvee watching fellow fire fighters put the system into operation when the tank exploded. The force of the explosion caused the base of the tank to separate from the tank and strike a motorized hose reel mounted at the rear of the Humvee's bed. The resultant force dislodged the hose reel which struck the victim, killing him instantly. A second fire fighter was knocked down by the force of the explosion and two other fire fighters narrowly escaped injury. Contributing Factors: 1. Use of a self-made water delivery system without an over-pressurization safety relief or other safety mechanism and inappropriate system components. 2. Limited written operating procedures and policies. 3. The pressure gauge on the water delivery system was inappropriate for its intended use. 4. Limited training in the use of the equipment. Key Recommendations: 1. Ensure that fire suppression equipment is properly designed and safe for its intended use and refrain from using self-made equipment that does not meet applicable safe design standards and practice. 2. Be aware of programs that provide assistance in obtaining alternative funding, such as grant funding, to replace or purchase fire apparatus and equipment.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Automobiles Emergency Responders Explosions Firefighters Fires Occupational Health Safety Staff Development

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• Keywords:
  Accident-analysis Accident-prevention Emergency-responders Fire-fighters Fire-fighting-equipment High-pressure Injuries Injury-prevention Motor-vehicles OSHA Region 5 Safety-practices Surveillance Training Traumatic-injuries

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• FACE - Firefighter:
  Cause of Death: Trauma ; Motor Vehicle: Miscellaneous ; Trauma: Excess / Surplus
• Series:
  Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program (FFFIPP)
• Subseries:
  Death in the Line of Duty Report
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHFFFACEF201032
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study ; Report
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSR - Division of Safety Research
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-26
• Contributor:
  Quinn, Kevin D.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20039775
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2012-100260
• Citation:
  Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE F2010-32, 2011 Sep ; :1-26
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2011
• NORA Priority Area:
  Services: Public Safety
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  92 - Public Administration - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  2010/09/24
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:bf570a80ebd1d6e45d9a0c0695cd8489fe1c4fdcd9dc7d4c272e3cf43908c252b43f805d9d63b82d4a2db3ab6a1fb69f50c0a6215c6bf71c9f475a1e57c6c043
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/163511/cdc_163511_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 3.97 MB ]