Manhole explosion send SUV flying onto Bronx FF

[FF402 133]

Anyone catch this in the Daily News yesterday? Wow.

Lucky to be alive

Fireman saved by 'hand of God' after SUV lands on him

BY TONY SCLAFANI

DAILY NEWS POLICE BUREAU

Firefighter Marc Kroenung miraculously walked away from having this SUV land on his head after manhole explosion in Bronx.

A manhole explosion sent an SUV flying onto a Bronx firefighter - but he was miraculously saved by his helmet when he crashed clean through a side window.

Firefighter Marc Kroenung, a 33-year-old married father of two, was helping extinguish a manhole fire Saturday when an underground explosion sent the Cadillac Escalade hurtling upward.

The giant SUV came down sideways, with the driver's side window shattering against Kroenung's helmet as the auto crashed to the pavement. He was left standing inside the overturned SUV.

"I just heard the boom and then I'm like, 'What just happened?' " Kroenung told the Daily News last night. "Then I realized I'm stuck." Kroenung was left trapped but not seriously hurt - leaving his fellow Engine 73 firefighters stunned, then joyous after they pulled him from the wreckage on Beck St. in Longwood on Saturday night.

Kroenung received five stitches to his head at Jacobi Medical Center, where his close call left staffers marveling.

"He looked great. It was like the hand of God was watching him," a nurse said last night.

The incident began just after 9:30 p.m. when firefighters responded to a manhole fire on Leggett Ave. As firefighters doused the flames, Kroenung went around the corner to his rig on Beck St. to get tools to help Con Edison workers open more manholes to relieve underground pressure.

Then a buildup of carbon monoxide because of the fire sparked the explosion 120 feet away - causing the manhole cover to blast into the SUV parked above, launching it into the air.

Kroenung's helmet and back took the brunt of the impact, officials said.

"I think the helmet definitely saved my life," said Kroenung, after being discharged from the hospital at 6 p.m. yesterday.

Kroenung, who was able to talk to his lieutenant throughout the ordeal, eventually wiggled his head out of the helmet and then firefighters ripped off the windshield and pulled him out.

"It's a miracle he was alive, that he wasn't hurt more severely," a fire official said.

The underground blaze ignited inside a service box, possibly because of wires corroded from snow and salt, said Con Ed spokeswoman Joy Faber.

There were no power disruptions and crews were making repairs yesterday, she said.

Kroenung said he's still a bit shaken and nursing some bruises to his left side but planned to return to work soon.

"I'm just thankful for the way things turned out," he said. "I'm just glad to be home. I'm lucky."

With Melissa Grace and Derek Rose

[BedfordFire 7]

WOW

Its good to see he wasnt seriously injured

Talk about a close call!

[SRS131EMTFF 471]

good thing he was wearing his helmet and i want to see what that helmet looks like now.

Lucky him it could have been a lot worse

[DOC22 1]

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Talk about luck, Thank God he's alright! That's got to be the record for "close calls"

[ex-commish 490]

Thank God he is ok...

Andy Mancusi

Chief

Hawthorne FD

[JBE 328]

A few cuts a few bruises and a set of bunker pants in serious need of cleaning. Here's to hoping for a speedy recovery.

[llm60 0]

That is amazing thank god he is alright, he has to be one of the luckiest men on the face of the earth, if I were him I' d go buy some lotto tickets!!

[ny10570 745]

I think I've seen this happen before. I think there was a roadrunner and coyote involved or something like that.

[unleashedff248 3]

I don't wish that on anyone...but I would have loved to see the look on his face!

ALWAYS wear ALL your gear!

[IzzyEng4 427]

Some one up there like him a lot!!! WOW thankfully he's ok