The Bureau of Land Management has released a report about the rollover of a utility vehicle, a Ford F-350 Crew Cab flatbed truck, that occurred August 13, 2015 in northwest Arizona about 26 miles southeast of St. George, Utah. The driver, an Administratively Determined (AD) employee, not a regular BLM employee, was hauling supplies back from the High Meadow Fire and sustained a minor injury.
The findings in the report included the following:
- The vehicle’s data recorder indicated the truck was going 51 mph five seconds before the crash.
- The speed limit was not posted on the road. After a week of investigation, it was found that the “legal speed on the road was 35 mph”.
- The investigators found that multiple accidents had occurred within 20 yards of the rollover.
- Due to the mechanism of the accident it was feared that the driver could have a serious injury and should be transported to a hospital. However it would have taken 2.5 hours for an ambulance to get to the scene. After two assessments by individuals with medical training, the employee was taken to a hospital in a government vehicle.
- The document that authorizes a BLM employee to operate a government vehicle, BLM Form 1112-11, was missing in the person’s personnel folder.
- The AD employee and most of the district staff personnel could not determine who the supervisor of record was for him or other AD employees during the fire incident. The report indicated that the person was “conducting logistical support” for the High Meadow Fire.
- A Wilderness First Responder and EMTs were valuable in assessing the patient and getting him the appropriate care for an accident in a remote area.
- The investigators recommended that all engine crews and fire modules have an EMT in place to help assess situations and get initial care started for accidents that occur in remote areas.
—Our commentary about the frequency of fire engine rollovers.
—Articles tagged Rollover.
While I agree with having EMTs on crews, I feel like the federal agencies have done an underwhelming job of supporting folks who put their name on the line to provide assistance during emergency situations like these. Not only do the federal agencies not offer a pay incentive, but they also do not pay for continuing education credits. I hear, over and over again the value of having EMTs and doing emergency sims, but where is the investment? There really isn’t one, at this point. Unfortunately, the government tends to be reactive, when it comes to trained medical folks within wildland fire.