Two Buffalo firefighters suffered minor injuries after falling off a ladder while battling a blaze at a vacant house in the early-morning hours of Aug. 3.
The unidentified firefighter and lieutenant were transported to Erie County Medical Center and were treated and released, according to Fire Commissioner Garnell W. Whitfield Jr.
Crews responded to the fire on 7th Street at approximately 1:30 a.m. and the one-and-a-half story building was fully engulfed when they arrived.
A 35-foot extension ladder was set up and the two men made their way up it after they were ordered to vent the roof.
Upon reaching the roof, the firefighter saw that it had been compromised and that it was unstable.
"There was a decision made not to go on the roof so they retreated down the ladder," Whitfield said. "I don't know what happened next; I don't know if we will ever know."
While scaling back down the ladder, the firefighter fell, landing on the lieutenant below him. The lieutenant also was knocked off the ladder and both hit a chain-linked fence on their way down.
Whitfield said the firefighter fell approximately 20 feet while the lieutenant was about eight feet off the ground when he was knocked off the ladder.
"They were immediately attended to by the FAST Team," he said. "They retrieved the guys and treated them. It went very well."
The firefighter suffered a laceration above his eye and bruises on his shin and knee. Both the firefighter and lieutenant experienced back pain, which Whitfield attributed to the weight of their SCBAs.
"Everything that happens on the fireground you try to learn from," he said. "Right now we're trying to find out what happened and what could be done differently. Honestly, I don't know if there was anything we could have done differently."
Paul Peluso | Staff Writer
Paul Peluso is a Firehouse.com staff writer and has worked for the Web site since 2006. Previously, he worked as a reporter for several community newspapers located in the suburbs of Baltimore, Md. Since joining the newsteam, Paul has covered various fire service issues including fire sprinklers, grants, line of duty deaths and technology. While he started out at the Beltsville, Md. office, he has since moved to Florida where he works out of his home office in Tampa.
