A car struck a Cleveland Fire Department pumper that was positioned as a blocker for an earlier accident Tuesday, Dec. 10 on Highway 40 in North Carolina, the department said in a Facebook post.
The car also struck another vehicle before hitting the pumper, the department said. Minor injuries were sustained by the drivers of the passenger cars. No firefighters were injured.
Cleveland Engine 2, Cleveland Rescue 1, and Johnston County EMS were dispatched to a motor vehicle accident involving a single vehicle leaving the roadway and overturning at the 313 mile marker of Highway 40.
The single passenger vehicle was found off the roadway with one person pinned. Rescue 1 arrived and started the extrication of the occupant. Engine 2 was positioned as a blocker for Rescue 1 and its crew so firefighters could safely retrieve equipment to provide the needed assistance for the extrication process, the department said.
While these operations were taking place a passenger car failed to reduce speed striking another vehicle as well as Engine 2, according to the department.
“We ask that this serves as a reminder to slow down and move over when you encounter emergency vehicles,” the department said in the post. “The lives of our firefighters depend on it.”
