There was indication listening to witnesses speak about Saturday’s runaway fire engine incident in Anne Arundel County, Maryland that parents jumped aboard the rig as it rolled away with eight children on board. Now, the Annapolis Capital has confirmed that and other details from the police report. According to the report parents say they steered Engine 201 from the Lake Shore Volunteer Fire Department into a tree to avoid parked cars. Here are excerpts from the article by Lisa Beisel:
The Lake Shore Volunteer Fire Company drove its newest engine to a child’s birthday party Saturday afternoon on Edgewater Road. Eight children were on it when the truck suddenly began to roll down the hill, crossing Edgewater Road before hitting a tree. None of the children were injured.
Tim Hall, the chief of the volunteer company, said yesterday he was at the party and near the truck when it began to move. When he saw what was happening, he took off running to try to stop it.
Picture by Matt Stevens.
“I just did what I thought I had to do,” he said.
But he fell and hurt his knee before reaching the truck.
Hall said he doesn’t know how or why the truck started rolling. The brake was on and a wheel chock – a device placed in front or behind a wheel to keep it from moving – was in place, he said.
One of the parents told police investigating the crash that he heard a “loud clicking noise” right before the truck began rolling.
He and another parent ran after the engine. One of them was able to get into the rear passenger’s-side area of the fire truck and grab the steering wheel, running it into a tree at an adjacent home. County fire officials said Saturday that the engine rolled from 441 Edgewater Road to 445 Edgewater Road.
According to police, volunteer Firefighter Lisa Hall, the chief’s wife, parked the engine and put the brakes in place. She is in training to earn certification to drive the engine on calls. Their son, Timothy Hall Jr., another volunteer, also was there, police said.
He said he followed safety protocol at the scene. The engine was off, the keys weren’t in the ignition, and there were wheel chocks in place to prevent rolling.
