VA Apparatus Headed to Call Struck by Tractor-Trailer

A Virginia fire apparatus was struck by a tractor-trailer while responding to an emergency Tuesday.

The accident happened just after 6 a.m. as a Loudoun County Fire and Rescue apparatus was heading to Route 15 after leaving the station in Lucketts, Loudoun Now reports. The apparatus was responding to a fire call, and its lights and siren was turned on at the time.

As the apparatus began driving through an intersection, it was struck by a tractor-trailer. According to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office, the tractor-trailer's driver had lost control of the vehicle and was unable to stop.

Three firefighters aboard the apparatus and the driver of the tractor-trailer were injured in the collision. They were taken to the hospital, and their injuries were considered minor.

The relatively new apparatus sustained significant damage, and the rig is being sent to the Pierce Manufacturing factory in Wisconsin for repairs. A backup apparatus from the training academy temporarily will be used in its place.

The driver of tractor-trailer was cited for failure to maintain control in connection with the accident. This is the first accident at the intersection—which is only 300 feet from the Loudoun County fire station—involving an apparatus in recent memory, a sheriff's office spokesman told Loudoun Now.