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One dead as fire truck smashes into apartment
By Russell Contreras, Associated Press Writer
Sunday, January 11, 2009 | No comments posted.
BOSTON (AP) — A Boston Fire Department ladder truck coming down a hill plowed through an intersection Friday and crashed into a high-rise apartment building, killing one firefighter and injuring several other people.
Dozens firefighters bowed their heads and held their helmets over their hearts as they created a pathway for the body of one firefighter — covered in a black body bag on a stretcher — to be carried from the wreckage and put into an ambulance.
The truck apparently barreled down the steep Parker Hill Avenue, went through the intersection at Huntington Avenue and slammed into the building, said Fire Department spokesman Steve MacDonald.
It was not immediately clear how many other people were injured.
A Boston Police spokeswoman said there were “multiple injuries,” but could not be more specific. MacDonald confirmed four firefighters were among those injured but the extent was not known.
Three firefighters taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center were in good condition, said spokeswoman Zineb Marchoudi.
The accident closed part of Huntington Avenue — a major thoroughfare near Northeastern University and several of the city’s major medical centers.
The truck struck several cars and a brick wall before becoming lodged in the building.
“It went, ’boom,’ then the alarm went off,” said Ruth Sands, 65, who lives next door and saw the truck hit the building.
The tall red-brick structure is owned by the nonprofit Roxbury Tenants of Harvard, a housing and human service organization that was founded by residents of the neighborhood in 1969. The truck struck the first floor of the building near a computer learning center for children.
Sands said she saw children being escorted to an ambulance. There were no immediate reports of children being seriously injured.
WHDH-TV reported the same ladder truck involved in Friday’s accident was involved in a minor accident Dec. 10, when the truck rear-ended a car at the intersection of Huntington and Longwood avenues, causing minor damage and no injuries.
Associated Press reporters Bob Salsberg, Denise Lavoie and Jay Lindsay contributed to this report.
Dozens firefighters bowed their heads and held their helmets over their hearts as they created a pathway for the body of one firefighter — covered in a black body bag on a stretcher — to be carried from the wreckage and put into an ambulance.
The truck apparently barreled down the steep Parker Hill Avenue, went through the intersection at Huntington Avenue and slammed into the building, said Fire Department spokesman Steve MacDonald.
It was not immediately clear how many other people were injured.
A Boston Police spokeswoman said there were “multiple injuries,” but could not be more specific. MacDonald confirmed four firefighters were among those injured but the extent was not known.
Three firefighters taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center were in good condition, said spokeswoman Zineb Marchoudi.
The accident closed part of Huntington Avenue — a major thoroughfare near Northeastern University and several of the city’s major medical centers.
The truck struck several cars and a brick wall before becoming lodged in the building.
“It went, ’boom,’ then the alarm went off,” said Ruth Sands, 65, who lives next door and saw the truck hit the building.
The tall red-brick structure is owned by the nonprofit Roxbury Tenants of Harvard, a housing and human service organization that was founded by residents of the neighborhood in 1969. The truck struck the first floor of the building near a computer learning center for children.
Sands said she saw children being escorted to an ambulance. There were no immediate reports of children being seriously injured.
WHDH-TV reported the same ladder truck involved in Friday’s accident was involved in a minor accident Dec. 10, when the truck rear-ended a car at the intersection of Huntington and Longwood avenues, causing minor damage and no injuries.
Associated Press reporters Bob Salsberg, Denise Lavoie and Jay Lindsay contributed to this report.
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