Report Number: 06-0000133
Report Date: 03/03/2006
Event Description
Responded to a PIC on a divided expressway with median wall; 4 door sedan vs. semi steel hauler. Closed roadway with appropriate apparatus; completed extrication, and transport. During "clean-up and pick-up", all personnel had returned to their apparatus off of roadway, preparing to re-open. Fire captain completed final inspection of working area for vehicle safety, stability, and tools. As he attempted to cross closed roadway to return to his apparatus, 2 road commission plow/salt trucks came down the right shoulder/ditch past a 1 mile traffic back-up, around the blockade, and proceeded through the scene, plowing and salting as they went. The plows were not visible to the captain, due to the disabled semi, until they were 10 feet away and he was within 5 feet of their path, walking toward them.
Lesson Learned
We learned that an existing traffic back-up at the time of our closure did not eliminate the need to position an upstream traffic spotter. In addition, while radio contact with that spotter is mandatory, we are considering a hand-held air-horn or other instant warning device and training on how to react to that horn.
Preventing a similar event would include:
- use of a spotter at ANY and EVERY roadway incident,
- equipping that spotter with an instant warning device in addition to the radio, and
- training on how to react to the instant warning sound.
We have discussed and trained wrecker services on how to approach our scenes, but we apparently overlooked the plow trucks; probably because we have not EVER had a similar interaction with them. Was it predictable; yes. Fortunately, we will be able to prevent it without a tragedy to trigger it now.
We have initiated contact with the road commission to begin establishing ground rules for when our agencies interact.
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