A Texas fire department released a frightening video of an awning collapsing on firefighters during an intentionally set three-alarm fire earlier this month.
The incident happened during an Aug. 7 commercial fire in Longview, the department said in a Facebook post. While crews battled the fire, the concrete underlining of an awning came crashing down, which was captured on video shot from a laptop at the scene and released by the department Tuesday.
“The awning had a concrete fiberboard type of underlayment, and it was close to an inch thick, so it was heavy when it came down,” Longview Fire Marshal Kevin May told KLTV-TV.
Two firefighters suffered injuries that weren't considered life-threatening and were taken to the hospital. One firefighter, who was caught beneath the rubble, sustained a concussion and back injuries, while the other firefighter injured an ankle, May said.
A third firefighter had burns on his arms and was treated at the scene.
“We feel really fortunate that nobody got hurt any worse than they did,” May added.
One person was arrested and charged with arson and three counts of injury to a firefighter in connection with the fire. The investigation is ongoing.
