A Buffalo fire truck racing to a downtown blaze collided with a civilian vehicle and overturned on South Elmwood Avenue at Chippewa Street Tuesday morning, Buffalo police reported.
The driver of the fire truck was taken to a local hospital, but authorities said they believe he was taken there as a precaution after he was extricated by Rescue 1. That fire lieutenant was treated and released.
The accident occurred at about 9 a.m., as two fire trucks raced down South Elmwood toward a fire at 4 Cathedral Park, at Main Street. Both vehicles approached the Chippewa intersection, but only the first one cleared the intersection.
"The other tried to go around a car making a left turn onto Chippewa, but the fire truck and car collided in the intersection," Buffalo police spokesman Michael J. DeGeorge said.
That second fire truck, an "air truck" that supplies firefighters with their air tanks, overturned, struck another vehicle and landed on its side against a building on the west side of South Elmwood, just south of Chippewa.
The air truck suffered extensive damage, but authorities said the building that was struck sustained only very minor damage.
The Accident Investigation Unit responded to determine whether any charges could be filed. There have been no charges lodged, DeGeorge said shortly before noon.
Fire officials said that the blaze at 4 Cathedral Park broke out in the vestibule of that building, leaving an estimated $10,000 damage. The cause remains under investigation.
Copyright 2012 - The Buffalo News, N.Y.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
