Fire Truck Overturns Responding to LA Fire

The Los Angeles Fire Department said two firefighters suffered minor injuries on Tuesday, May 19, after a fire apparatus crashed and overturned while responding to a structure fire in Sunland. The department said both firefighters were taken to a local hospital for evaluation, and no members of the public were injured. Video from local television outlets showed the truck on its side against an H&R Block storefront after the crash. The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating what caused the accident. ### Where did the crash happen, and when? Sunland, a neighborhood in the northern part of Los Angeles, was the site of the crash at about 6:45 p.m. to 7 p.m. on May 19, according to local reports and the fire department. ABC7 reported the location as 10500 North McVine Avenue, just south of Foothill Boulevard, while NBC Los Angeles said the crash was reported in the 8200 block of Foothill Boulevard. Both reports described the same Sunland commercial area. (lafd.org) Video cited by ABC7 and NBC Los Angeles showed the fire engine leaning as it moved through an intersection, then swerving into a building and rolling onto its side. Aerial footage showed the apparatus resting partly against an H&R Block office and partly on top of or against nearby vehicles. ### What did LAFD say about the firefighters who were hurt? LAFD said the two firefighters sustained minor injuries in the crash. (abc7.com) The department said both were transported to a local hospital and were being evaluated by medical personnel. The identities of the injured firefighters were being withheld pending notification of their families, according to the department statement. No members of the public were injured, LAFD said. That department statement did not identify the specific unit involved or give further details about the firefighters’ conditions beyond saying their injuries were minor. ### What damage was reported at the scene? ABC7 reported that two parked cars were damaged and a third was pinned under the fire engine. (lafd.org) NBC Los Angeles also reported that the truck appeared to have struck at least two parked vehicles before coming to a stop partly on a sidewalk. Both outlets said it was not immediately clear how much damage the H&R Block building sustained. Employees from a nearby Panda Express told ABC7 they had to evacuate, and businesses along Foothill Boulevard between McVine and Oro Vista avenues closed early as cleanup and the investigation continued into the night. ### What was the truck responding to? LAFD said the apparatus was responding to a structure fire when the crash happened. The department’s public statement described the incident as a vehicle accident involving firefighters en route to that emergency call. (abc7.com) Local television reports matched that account and said the engine was headed to a structure fire at the time it overturned. The department did not, in the statement reviewed, provide additional details about the fire call or say whether another unit took over that response. ### Who is investigating what caused the overturn? The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating the accident, LAFD said. Local reports said the cause was not immediately available on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, and no public explanation had been released for why the truck lost control. (lafd.org) LAFD said it would provide further updates as additional information becomes available. (lafd.org) As of the department’s May 19 statement and local reports published May 20, the next formal step was the LAPD investigation into the crash and any follow-up from the fire department on the injured firefighters.