One firefighter dead, 4 injured after collision in Kaohsiung City
A Kaohsiung City firefighter lost signs of life at the scene of an accident, and four others were injured, after a fire truck dispatched to the scene of a fire collided with a semi-trailer, last night, February 13.
Five firefighters were aboard the fire truck, dispatched from the Fengxiang Fire Station to Dingpu Street in Fengshan District at around 10:00 pm when the accident occurred.
Dash-cam footage provided by a witness to local media agencies showed the firetruck, with sirens and warning lights engaged crossing the intersection of Fengding Road and Guopi Road when a semi-trailer carrying a shipping container attempted to speed through the intersection as the light changed from green to amber.
The video footage shows the fire truck hitting the trailer, spinning 180 degrees, and flipping onto its side.
Firefighters from surrounding districts were dispatched to rescue their injured comrades. One firefighter was OHCA, and was later declared dead at the hospital. Another firefighter was unconscious, and three suffered non-critical injuries.
The driver of the container truck, Mr Zhang, told an Apple Daily reporter that he did not hear the siren.
A preliminary police investigation found that Zhang was traveling with his 8-year-old son at the time of the accident. While the truck was being loaded at the Port of Kaohsiung, Mr Zhang had consumed a cup of Paolyta-B, an alcoholic energy drink.
Police conducted an alcohol breath test on Mr Zhang, which recorded a level of 0.06 mg/l, well under the legal limit of 0.25 mg/l (BAC 0.05%). Zhang was handed over to the District Prosecutor’s Office to be investigated on suspicion of professional negligence causing death.
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