Washington, DC (February 15, 2008) -- On April 23, 2005, the Amarillo Fire Department departed Amarillo Station 1 en route to a house fire at 2201 hours. Two days later, Firefighter Brain Hunton was dead from injuries he sustained falling out of the fire truck after the latching mechanism for the door malfunctioned. He was not wearing his seat belt. Over the past 30 years, more than 400 firefighters have died due to vehicle crashes. About 75 percent died as a direct result from not wearing their seat belt.
Five major fire service organizations: International Association of Fire Chiefs, National Volunteer Fire Council, National Fire Protection Association, National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, and the United States Fire Administration are sponsoring the National Fire Service Seat Belt Pledge Campaign to remember Brian and get First Responders to Buckle UP.
Currently, over 45,000 firefighters have signed the pledge. The goal is set at 1,000,000 signatures. While many are willing to sign the pledge, some find buckling up only slows them down. Often, firefighters spend the ride to an alarm suiting up as Hunton did. He was donning his breathing apparatus when he was thrown from the fire truck. In 2007, 24 firefighters lost their lives in vehicle crashes while responding, 12 were not wearing seat belts.
On Wednesday, February 20th, the fire service will get some help. St. Louis Rams quarterback Marc Bulger will be in Washington, DC at Engine 16 in order to shoot a Public Service Announcement urging firefighters to buckle-up and sign the pledge.
"Marc Bulger signed onto this project almost immediately, donating his time and personal expense to come to DC and shoot the PSA," says Firehouse.com Publisher Christopher Hebert. Firehouse.com is producing the program which will be shown on its website and other video outlets that reach firefighters. "His commitment will bring more awareness to our mission of getting every firefighter to buckle-up before he or she leaves the firehouse."
Bulger has given his time for other public servant initiatives. He founded a charitable organization called The Marc Bulger Foundation providing programs that benefit men and women in uniform.
"Each year, about 25 percent of Line Of Duty Deaths are directly related to vehicle crashes with most of those deaths attributed to not wearing a seat belt," says Dr. Burton A. Clark the campaign coordinator. "While the number may seem small, it is 100 percent preventable. Losing one of our own affects everyone in the fire service, their families and friends. There is no excuse."
