It took federal investigators three months to launch a probe into an incident that claimed the life of a South Dakota firefighter last spring.
On April 8, Thomas "Emmett" Kuehl, 38, was struck in the head by a shackle from a tow rope. He died three days later.
A member of Elkton Volunteer Fire Co., Kuehl was in the driver's seat of an engine that was stuck in a field. A tow rope with shackles attached was hooked between the fire truck and a tractor.
As tension was pulled, the shackle attached to the tractor failed, causing the rope to recoil. The device crashed through the cab of the fire engine, struck Kuehl in the head and continued out the back window, according to a NIOSH report.
Kuehl was taken to a local hospital, and then to a regional trauma center where he died.
The U.S. Fire Administration notified NIOSH of the incident on April 14. In July, an investigator went to South Dakota to conduct a probe.
NIOSH officials noted in their report: "The shackle attached to the tractor that failed during the incident had been lost prior to the investigator's arrival and therefore was not available for assessment. There had been no photographs taken of the broken shackle."
Following interviews with fire department personnel and examining the SOPs, NIOSH issued a number of recommendations.
The report can be reviewed at NIOSH.
