While it’s still unclear seven months later if a taxing 48-hour shift contributed to the sudden heart attack death of firefighter and paramedic Richard Garner, the fire department is looking at whether its wellness programs, fitness testing policies and shift scheduling could better prevent job-related health problems or deaths. The department’s self-examination also comes as the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), an arm of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, plans to probe Garner’s death to see if there could be a link between its circumstances and several other similar firefighter deaths. Firefighters in Madison typically work 24-hour shifts, but are allowed to work longer to fill in for a colleague

While a 5-ton 6X6 former military cargo truck converted for use as a fire engine was making a mobile attack on the fire, the driver, the only person in the vehicle, was operating a nozzle out of his window. The truck was in the green unburned area suppressing the active fire edge when the Low Air Warning System activated and it suddenly came to a stop. The driver was not able to move the vehicle. He got out, looked at the fire, then went back to retrieve his fire shelter. The truck would still pump water and he used a nozzle to wet the area around the immobile vehicle. Another engine, with the Fire Warden and a Fire Chief, came over to help and also sprayed water, but the fire closed in quickly

KFD said there were no injuries to personnel, but the department did pull Engine 21 off the road and replace it with a reserve engine.  

The limb hit the fire engine while KFD was on the way to a fire alarm at Ten Mile Center.