- Author
- Routley, J. G. | Bush, R.
- Title
- Aerial Ladder Collapse Incidents, April 1996. USFA Fire Investigation Technical Report Series.
- Coporate
- TriData Corp., Arlington, VA
- Sponsor
- Federal Emergency Management Agency, Washington, DC
- Report
- Report 081, 1996, 40 p.
- Distribution
- AVAILABLE FROM: U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), 16825 South Seton Ave., Emmitsburg, MD 21727. Telephone: 301-447-1000. Website: http://www.usfa.fema.gov
- Contract
- EMW-94-C-4423
- Keywords
- fire investigations | ladders | statistics | training | manuals | design applications | load capacity | inspection | failure analysis | warning systems | training manuals
- Abstract
- This report addresses five separate incidents in which fire department aerial ladders collapsed. The most serious of these incidents occurred in New York City, where one man died and his wife, two young children and two firefighters were injured when an aerial ladder collapsed during a rescue attempt. Two of the other incidents also resulted in serious injuries to firefighters. Each of these incidents involved the collapse of an aerial ladder due to structural failure. Four of the five ladders were being used in situations at fires that involved extending the ladder at a low angle of elevation. The fifth incident occurred during a high angle rescue training session where the ladder was being used to support rappelling personnel. Several similar incidents have occurred in recent years, including a number that resulted in deaths or serious injuries. These incidents indicate a significant optential problem with existing aerial ladders that were not designed to provide the structural capabilities of ladders that are currently in production.