Two South Dakota Firefighters Injured after Tanker Rollover

Emery, South Dakota-- Two volunteer firefighters were injured Sunday en route to a grass fire when their tanker truck tipped and rolled into a ditch south of Emery.

Both men were ejected from the vehicle but neither sustained life-threatening injuries, according to a city official.

The driver, Darin Kayser, was airlifted to a Sioux Falls hospital and had multiple broken bones, the employee said, and the passenger, Herb Albin, was taken by ambulance to a Mitchell hospital.

"We just feel fortunate that they're both alive," said Angel Kotas, Emery's finance official. "We appreciate what the volunteer firefighters do, but you take for granted sometimes that stuff can happen."

The tanker truck tipped about 10 p.m. Sunday near 429th Avenue and 263rd Street south of Emery, a town of about 440 people in Hanson County. Lt. Kevin Joffer of the South Dakota Highway Patrol said this morning the cause of the accident was unknown.

The truck was the last of four fire department vehicles bound for a rural grass fire they think was started by a lightning strike.

Volunteer Brad Kressman was one of a handful of firefighters following the trucks to the scene in civilian vehicles.

"We were about half a mile behind them and saw a flash of dust," Kressman said. "We got up there, and the truck was in the ditch."

The truck's 2,000 gallon water tank was torn off the top of the vehicle and rolled several feet from the ditch. The vehicle was wrecked in the crash, including its emergency radio.

Kressman called 911 from a cell phone and dispatchers alerted the other trucks, one of which returned from the fire scene with first aid equipment.

"We turned around and went back," said Terry Hanssen, who was driving the second truck.

Firefighters worked to keep the two men stable until ambulances arrived from Mitchell.

The tanker truck didn't survive, Kressman said.

"We'll have to get a new one," he said.

Meanwhile, the town's elevator has left a smaller tank filled with water to loan to firefighters in case of an emergency, he said.

"We're glad that everybody's alive," Hanssen said. "It could have been a lot worse."

Reach Dan Haugen at 331-2335.

Republished with permission of the Argus Leader.