Two Prince George's County firefighters were injured when their ladder truck tipped over Monday morning.
The crew from Riverdale Volunteer Fire Department (Station 7) was using the aerial master stream to douse hot spots from a previous fire in Riverdale Park. After shutting down the water supply to reposition the ladder, the rig began to tip towards the officer's side.
The outrigger gave way when the sidewalk collapsed beneath it, Prince George's County Fire/EMS Spokesman Mark Brady said.
"It wasn't a sudden drop, it was a slow, gradual drop," said Brady.
The two volunteer firefighters in the bucket sustained minor injuries to their chests and hands and were taken to the hospital for evaluation, according to Brady. They were released a couple hours later.
The bucket on the extended tower ladder boom is what supported the rig after it tipped, said Brady.
He said the apparatus will be out of service until it is examined.
The historic three-story home was engulfed when firefighters arrived Saturday night.
Crews spent hours containing the fire and had returned to the scene Monday morning to douse some hot spots.
"It was an older home with balloon construction and we had some hidden hot spots reignite," Brady said.
"What the crews decided to do before this happened was to use Tower 7 to set up ladder pipe operations and soak down the entire home."
