On The Job - Iowa: Off-Duty Firefighter Burned In Attempt To Rescue Gasoline Tanker Driver

Off-duty Cedar Rapids, IA, Firefighter Burl "Joe" Hunt was preparing to leave his brother Larry's campground near Interstate 80 in eastern Iowa on July 21, 1999.

The campground is located where the busy thoroughfare crosses the Cedar River, and the firefighter noticed a commotion on the interstate, and saw a woman run across the highway to several stopped vehicles near the Cedar River Bridge. Hunt and his brother immediately jumped into a pickup truck and went to investigate. They found there had been an accident of some sort, but couldn't tell what it was.

First Report

It was 10:30 A.M., and the heat index was at 110 degrees Fahrenheit. The accident had already been reported to the Tipton Fire Department and an ambulance was enroute to the incident - initially described as "a semi in a ditch."

The truck was off the road and below the bridge. What Hunt discovered when he and his brother were able to investigate more closely was a tanker truck lying on its side, its contents undetermined, but which Hunt suspected was gasoline. He immediately ordered another call placed to 911 to report the additional information.

No smoke or fire was evident from the wrecked truck, but steam was rising from its engine compartment. Hunt's priority was to make certain everyone was a safe distance away. He and his brother then took the pickup down to the site of the crash, which was in an area of grass and brush 50 yards from the river.

Once he reached the site, Hunt advanced toward the wreckage. He caught wisps of gasoline fumes, and saw that both front windshields were out of the cab and the hood was gone. He could see a man trapped inside, and thought he could hear the man making sounds. Hunt told his brother to go get a crowbar or something to help him pry the driver out.

An onlooker from above suddenly yelled down that it looked as though the tanker was leaking. Awaiting his brother's return, Hunt donned the medical gloves he always carries. It was then that he noticed a stream of what he believed was gasoline flowing from the tanker and into the cab. He thought that perhaps, with a good pull, he could free the driver and move him away from the wreckage.

Hunt had just pulled on the second glove, and said he recollects his brother having taken about 10 steps past him to get the crow bar, when the truck flashed. He heard his brother yell, and next found himself lying on his back. He didn't know if he had been blown backwards, or had jumped back, but he was on the ground.

Hunt covered his eyes, held his breath and rolled out of the flames. Once out, his brother took him back to his campground office and called the Tipton Ambulance to inform the unit that there was a burn victim from the accident there.

The Tipton Fire Department was already enroute. Assistant Chief Kevin Kofron was riding in the second apparatus to leave the station, an engine. The departments quick-attack unit with Captain Curt Woode and another firefighter aboard was ahead of him.

Nearly simultaneous with the dispatch of the Tipton Fire Department had been dispatch of the West Branch Fire Department through the Johnson County Dispatch Center. West Branch covers territory up to the other side of the Cedar River.

A Change In Strategy

Kofron was three miles from town, and six miles from the incident scene, when he could see black smoke billowing into the sky. Another dispatch came across the radios informing responding units that this was a tanker and it had just exploded.

That dispatch put Kofron into a different mode of thinking, and a major shift in strategy. Instead of sizing up the incident to determine victim injuries and what extrication tactics would be necessary, Kofron's immediate concern became the safety of bystanders. Moreover, considering the environmental conditions, he was concerned for firefighters and emergency responders who would be fighting the intense blaze in the unrelenting July heat. He immediately requested additional assistance.

Woode arrived on scene and radioed Kofron that access to the burning truck could be made only via an access road running through the campground and under the bridge - the same road Hunt and his brother had taken.

When Kofron reached a position from which he could see view the incident, it was obvious there was no life-safety concern for any accident victims - the entire tanker and cab were on fire.

"Flames were shooting up in the air higher than the trees," he said. "At least 60 feet into the air."

A 21/2-inch line was pulled from the engine and directed at the truck cab in an effort to keep the flames away from the cab. Rather than establish a water-shuttle operation, the Tipton engine set up to draft directly from the river as mutual aid began arriving.

West Branch Fire Department units, under the direction of Chief Dick Stohlman, arrived on top of the bridge. Stohlman was immediately concerned about the threat that heat from the fire posed to the bridge's structural integrity. He ordered the bridge cooled with hose streams.

When an engine from the West Liberty Fire Department arrived, Stohlman directed the crew to set up drafting operations from the river and supply the West Branch engine on top of the bridge with a five-inch line. From that position West Branch put five 13/4-inch and 21/2-inch lines into operation and, once the bridge was cooled, directed them at the cab of the burning truck. Firefighters were aware that a body was inside and were determined to preserve it as well as they could.

The aluminum shell of the tanker had collapsed and the fuel was burning freely, but firefighters were still uncertain what kind of product was on the tanker. One hour into the incident, a crew of firefighters in full protective clothing, under the protection of hose streams, made entry and retrieved the truck's license plate. An Iowa Department of Transportation officer used the plate to quickly determine that the truck was indeed carrying gasoline, as had been suspected.

A brief conference was held at the scene. Knowing there was no way they were going to be able to extinguish the blaze, Kofron elected to keep the truck and bridge cool while letting the gasoline burn off. The potential for environmental contamination and high cleanup costs, plus concerns for personnel safety, were the primary factors behind this decision. Kofron's next concern then became containing the runoff from the trailer and preventing it from reaching the river. Fortunately, the truck had landed in a natural low spot, which helped to contain the gasoline.

By this time, in addition to the Tipton, West Branch and West Liberty fire departments, the incident's complement of emergency responders had grown to include the Atalissa, Hills and Iowa City fire departments, Johnson County and Scott County hazardous material teams, Cedar County Sheriff's Department, Tipton Police Department, Iowa Department of Transportation, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, and Cedar County and Johnson County Red Cross units.

Firefighters continued to maintain hose streams on the tanker and on the bridge to keep it cool. An endloader was brought in to build up a containment area to handle runoff.

In the early afternoon, after flames from the burning trailer decreased in intensity, a decision was made to extinguish the fire by using foam. Resources were pooled and 40 gallons of Class B foam was on hand. The Muscatine Fire Department foam unit was called, and firefighters began applying foam concurrent with the unit's arrival, putting the flames down for good. Approximately 100 gallons of unburned product was all that remained in the melted trailer.

Safeguarding Firefighters

In reviewing the incident, Kofron noted that the biggest and best decision of the day was letting the fuel burn - a decision the Iowa Department of Natural Resources said it was pleased with.

Once it was determined this would be a body recovery, not a rescue, the major concern became the welfare of firefighters laboring in the excruciating heat. A rehab sector was established and firefighters were circulated through it. Only one firefighter suffered some minor heat stress. "The heat became our biggest obstacle," Kofron said.

Perhaps the most important lesson learned in the incident was the value of the incident command system, particularly when multiple agencies and multiple jurisdictions are operating at a scene.

The last unit left the scene at 2 P.M. Westbound Interstate 80 had been closed for the entire time. Nearly 100 emergency personnel were involved in the mitigation of the incident. An autopsy determined the tanker driver's death was not caused by the fire, and it is believed he suffered a heart attack that caused the vehicle to leave the road.

Hunt was taken from the scene by the Tipton Ambulance to the University of Iowa Hospital's Burn Unit. He suffered burns to 19% of his body, with third-degree burns to areas of his legs that were not protected. Skin grafting from donor sites on his thighs and hips was required.

Firefighter Hunt was honored in the Firehouse® Magazine Heroism & Community Service Awards program in the April 2000 issue.