Five firefighters were injured and a Tucson Fire Department engine was totaled Monday morning when the vehicle rolled over on the way to a medical call, officials said.
Engine 20 was responding to a call about an 83-year-old man with chest pain in the 1100 block of West Prince Road with lights and sirens when the accident happened around 10:50 a.m., said Capt. Paul McDonough, a Tucson Fire spokesman.
The fire engine, which was being driven by an engineer and was carrying a captain, a paramedic and two firefighters, was northbound on North Stone Avenue when it made a right turn onto East Fort Lowell Road, officials said.
For an unknown reason, the 40,000 pound truck tipped over, landing on the roof in the eastbound lanes of traffic.
Peter Cunningham, the owner of Heaven Sent Auto Sales on the corner of Stone and Fort Lowell, said he saw the engine overturn.
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"The engine was making a right turn and I saw it slowly tipping over, but it looked like it would balance out and be OK," he said. "Then it just toppled over. I'm not sure if it was trying to avoid something or what."
The engineer was trapped and Cunningham helped get him out, he said. The captain was in excruciating pain and Cunningham said he did all he could to keep him calm.
"He was breathing heavily and I tried to get him to slow down," Cunningham said. "I held his hand and let him know that I was praying for him."
All five men were transported to a hospital for treatment of non life-threatening injuries, McDonough said. They were all wearing their seat belts.
Another fire engine responded to the medical call that engine 20 was originally en route to, McDonough said.
The Tucson Police Department was on scene trying to determine exactly what happened and if any citations will be issued, said Sgt. Decio Hopffer, a Tucson Police spokesman.
The engine is worth $450,000 including equipment, McDonough said. Any equipment that will be re-used will have to be tested before it can go out into the field, he said.
The incident will be reviewed by the Tucson Fire Department's Accident Review Committee, McDonough said.
The name of the engineer who was driving will not be released until his family has been notified, McDonough said. The engineer has been with the Department since 2000.
The last time a fire engine overturned was five years ago in the area of West Speedway and North Silverbell Road while on the way to a fire at a fast food restaurant, according to Arizona Daily Star archives. That vehicle has since been refurbished and is back on the streets, McDonough said.
The accident shut down the intersection for several hours.
