Indiana FF critical after floor collapse

[Guest]

7:09 AM January 4, 2007

Upland firefighter hurt when floor collapses

BY TERESA AUCH

Marion Chronicle Tribune

January 4, 2007

An Upland firefighter was flown to Fort Wayne's Parkview Hospital after being critically injured Wednesday while trying to save another firefighter's house from flames.

Marion Fire Chief Steve Gorrell said Sidney Hall was trapped after he fell through the floor while he and other members of the Upland Volunteer Fire Department were trying to put out the fire.

Hall was listed as critical as of 8:50 p.m. Wednesday, according to an Upland fire department news release.

Hall was the first one to enter the house, said Gary Robinson, fire service grants and risk manager with the Indiana Department of Homeland Security.

Hall had taken four steps in when he fell through the hole, Robinson said Wednesday night at the fire scene while investigating the injury.

Other firefighters rushed to get him out of the house as smoke came billowing out, shouting, "Get him out of there!" as they got him to safety.

"He was pulled out of the fire and was unresponsive," Gorrell said.

Gorrell said he believed Hall suffered from a combination of injuries, one of which was possibly smoke inhalation. He did not know how long Hall had been trapped.

Seven other firefighters - six from Matthews Volunteer Fire Department and one from Center Township Volunteer Fire Department - suffered injuries trying to save him and were taken to Marion General Hospital, Robinson said.

All but one were expected to be released from the hospital on Wednesday, with the last one being kept overnight for observation, Robinson said.

"The firefighters did a real good job," Robinson said.

The fire was still more personal to the firefighters because the house owner is one of their own, Eddy Miller, who is a firefighter with the Marion department.

Neither he nor Ashley Watters, who lives with him, were home when the fire started, said Watters' mother, Cinda Vermilion.

The fire was reported at 3:21 p.m. when Grant County Sheriff's Deputy Jeff Sands was driving by the house when a neighbor flagged him down, asking if he had a cell phone, Sands said.

Fred Sumpter, assistant chief of investigation for the Indiana Department of Homeland Security, said the fire started in the basement with bad wiring in a light socket near the ceiling.

The fire burned the hole in the floor that Hall fell through.

Along with Upland, Matthews and Center and Mill townships, Gas City and Van Buren also provided manpower for the original call.

Marion dispatched themselves after they heard that a firefighter had become trapped, Gorrell said.

"When a firefighter is trapped, we all come," he said.

Gorrell said he was not sure how much damage the house suffered because all the departments were focused on helping to get the man out.

The destruction to the house comes just after Miller and Watters had finished remodeling it, Vermilion said.

They had gutted the upstairs, installed new floors and applied fresh paint.

[Guest alsfirefighter]

Glad they got the brother out. But one thing sticks with me and its not to sound callous...but:

Marion dispatched themselves after they heard that a firefighter had become trapped, Gorrell said.

"When a firefighter is trapped, we all come," he said.

Nothing like a y'all come to complicate things further.

[Remember585 815]

I'm with you on that one Tommy. I am sure the scene is hectic at best once it is realized a brother is in trouble, but adding non-requested resources can only hamper the accountability efforts.

Prayers with all involved.

[firecapt32 282]

I am glad the brother got out. makes me wonder just a little did he fall through a hole in the floor or did the floor give out. Were there any warning signs of a weak floor?? Sounds like a lot went wrong in a short period of time. It just drives the point into us be safe be carefull be alert. This is a dangerous profession we have chosen to participate in, lets not make it harded on ourselves.

god speed his recovery

[Guest]

Upland firefighter remains in critical condition

Jan 4, 2007 06:10 PM EST

wthr.com13

Chris Proffitt/Eyewitness News

Fort Wayne - A volunteer firefighter remains in critical condition after falling through the floor of a burning house. Several other firefighters were injured as they tried to rescue him from the rural Grant County home.

Firefighter Sidney Hall was critically injured in a Wednesday fire.

Hall had stepped only four feet into the smoke-filled house when the floor collapsed beneath him.

Seven other firemen were treated and released after they were injured rescuing Hall.

"I'm told that one firefighter entered into the basement, filled with fire, heat and smoke and shoved on him managing to help him be rescued by the firefighters on top," said Roger Johnson, state fire marshal.

Hall was first to enter the burning home, which is owned, ironically, by a Marion firefighter who was renovating the 19th century farmhouse.

Investigators say the fire started in the basement by faulty wiring in a light socket.

"Honesty, I didn't know anything about the fire until I came up the road and a neighbor stopped me and said, 'Your house is on fire,'" said Eddy Miller, homeowner.

A member of the Upland Fire Department since 1991, Sidney Hall was flown to a Fort Wayne Hospital where friends say doctors are treating him for trauma and smoke inhalation. Hall worked 20 years at nearby Taylor University.

"Sid was the kind of person that wouldn't do anything that wasn't by the book. Just like yesterday's accident, he was in full gear," said Scott Bragg, co-worker.

Several members of Upland's Volunteer Fire Department, including its chief, are at the firefighter's Fort Wayne bedside, declining interviews or updates on Hall's condition.

"Right now, it's just an emotionally difficult time for them and I understand where they're at," said Johnson.

While the state fire marshal continues to investigate the fire, Hall's fellow volunteer firefighters are reportedly devastated by the injuries they hope he recovers from.

One firefighter injured rescuing Hall was kept overnight in a Marion Hospital for observation but was released Thursday. Hall remains in critical condition.

[eckyphats 0]

best wishes to all involved.....

[Guest]

The brother has passed away. Pray for him and his family.

Please refer to the LODD notice. I now request that this topic be closed.

Edited January 6, 2007 by hoss