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Must see video: Fiery, deadly truck crash on Capital Beltway. Vehicle drives past cops, burning truck & burning bridge. But they get the pictures.

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Watch the raw video as driver rides past burning rig & bridge (Warning: Language might be offensive to some.)

WUSA9.com slideshow

This, to me, is quite interesting and I am not sure what to make of it. In the WUSA9.com report above by Surae Chinn is a brief video by a motorist who happened upon a burning tractor-trailer on the Capital Beltway in Forestville, Maryland (I-95 South at D’Arcy Road in Prince George’s County). The person who shot the video is in a vehicle returning from the University of Maryland Baltimore County around 11:00 last night. The fire was the result of a three vehicle crash that left the truck driver dead on the scene.

What I find fascinating (and I know I shouldn’t be surprised) is, looking at the raw video, the people in the car with the camera see the fire under the bridge ahead, drive past six police vehicles on the right side of the road (by my count) and then continue under the burning overpass anyway so they can get their pictures and get where they are going.

Obviously, we don’t know how long the police had been on the scene at the time this video was taken and what they were up against. I imagine a priority would soon be to keep others out of harm’s way (particularly those who aren’t thinking clearly enough to do it themselves).

Here’s a description of the crash and fire by Prince George’s County Fire/EMS Department PIO Mark Brady:

The fire extended from the truck cab to the underside of the bridge.  Sheets of plywood and wooden supports had been previously installed on the underside of the bridge to prevent crumbling concrete to fall onto the Beltway.  Brush fires ignited and travelled up the embankments towards Darcy Road.  Firefighters were successful in stopping the fire extension into the trailer portion of the 18-wheeler.  The trailer was about 25% loaded with bags of sugar.

Incident commanders immediately requested additional resources to the Beltway and to Darcy Road to deal with the fire.  A total of 60 firefighters and medics were on the scene on-board 10 pieces of apparatus and numerous command and support vehicles.  Both loops of the Beltway and Darcy Road were shut down while the fire was being extinguished which required about 45 minutes.

Click here to read more about the crash from WUSA9.com.

NIOSH report on Prince George’s County shopping center natural gas explosion. Cites SOGs, RIT and staffing. Fireground audio & explosion video.

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Read entire NIOSH report

Listen to fireground audio

NIOSH has issued its report in the May 7, 2009 explosion at the Penn Mar Shopping Center in Prince George’s County, Maryland that left eight firefighters and a gas company employee injured. The blast, fueled by natural gas, was captured on a camera mounted on the dash of one of the rigs parked near Side A of the structure.

Here is an excerpt from the reports findings:

NIOSH investigators concluded that, to minimize the risk of similar occurrences, fire departments should

  • ensure that standard operating guidelines for natural gas leaks are understood and followed
  • contact utility companies (natural gas and electric) immediately to cut external supply/power to structures when gas leaks are suspected
  • ensure gas monitoring equipment is adequately maintained and fire fighters are routinely trained on proper use
  • ensure ventilation techniques are conducted after ignition sources are mitigated
  • ensure that rapid intervention teams are staged at the onset of an incident
  • ensure that collapse/explosion control zones are established when dealing with a potential explosion hazard

Although there is no evidence that the following recommendations would have prevented these injuries, they are being provided as a reminder of good safety practices.

  • provide manual personal alert safety system (PASS) or tracking devices to locate potentially missing fire fighters when SCBA are not utilized
  • ensure standard operating guidelines for communications are understood by dispatch
  • ensure adequate staffing for emergency medical services and rapid intervention teams (RITs)
  • ensure training is evaluated for rank and skill levels across the combination department personnel