An Anne Arundel County fire station suffered substantial damage when a pumper backed in to the building Thursday night.
The accident happened around 10 p.m. when Engine 194 was returning to the Cape Saint Claire Fire Station.
"As they approached the station, the driver and officer in charge made the decision to back on to the front ramp, rather than placing firefighters on Cape St. Claire Road to spot the apparatus," Capt. Russ Davies said in a statement.
While backing the apparatus, the driver mistakenly believed he had the bay door lined up in his mirrors, Davies said. He was actually seeing two bay doors in his mirror.
As the pumper was backed in, it struck an exterior brick column between the two doors.
When the column was struck, it caused the lintel to collapse. That collapsed the two bay doors and the brickwork to the roofline crumbled.
Davies said the damaged to Engine 194 was cosmetic.
The mirror on Engine 191, which was parked inside the station, was damaged when struck by a falling bay door.
Davies said a county building inspector determined that the rest of the building was safe for occupancy.
Crews will continue to respond from the station.
