SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) -
Two Shreveport firefighters were taken to the hospital with minor injuries early Monday afternoon after their fire truck rolled over on Kings Hwy.
It happened just after 12 p.m. near Linwood Ave. It was not immediately clear what caused the ladder truck to wind up on its side (really? these firefighters were speeding way too much) , but Shreveport Fire Chief Scott Wolverton said they were responding to an EMS call when it happened.
"In response to the call, they made the turn and overturned. Right now, we don't know all the details that were involved," Wolverton told KSLA at the scene.
A witness tells KSLA News 12 cars were not yielding to the fire truck and it was going so fast that it was "on two wheels" by the time it reached Linwood and fell over.
"He was on call for an emergency and once he hit the corner, he was on two wheels and whole truck tipped over," said eyewitness Whitney McDonald.
Another witness said one of the firefighters was thrown from the fire truck and hit the road, but got back up and was able to walk to an ambulance.
No other vehicles were involved.
Dozens of residents gathered around the intersection in shock.
"It's not every day. This is the first time I've seen a fire truck flipped over, yes it is," said Shreveport resident Felicia McKinney.
"I was shocked. Nervous. My heart was beating. I was scared!" McDonald said. "I was just hoping he was OK but by the grace of God the man was OK!"
The firefighters inside were able to get themselves out and were taken to the hospital for treatment of their injuries, which are said to be non-life-threatening.
"Both of them were able to exit the vehicle on their own power," Wolverton said. "They have been transported to an area hospital to be checked out. There appears to be no life-threatening injuries."
It took fire crews nearly four hours to get Truck 8 upright and towed away but traffic has now returned to normal.
The firefighters need to slow down to prevent or minimize damage to the public vehicles they are driving. So many crashes involve firefighters that these practices need to stop.