Passenger vehicle collides with fire truck responding to emergency scene

A passenger vehicle collided with a fire truck responding to a structurefireThursday night in Garlands Crossing, N.S.

The fire completely destroyed a travel trailer.

Ryan Richard, of the Brooklyn Volunteer Fire Department, said crews responded to notification of "a structurefire with explosions" at around 9 p.m.on Highway 14.

He said by the time they arrived, a travel trailer parked in front of a mobile home was already engulfed in flames.

"The travel trailer was a total loss," he said, adding that the mobile home sustained some damage.

Richard believes the fire was caused by a propane explosion. He said the owner of the mobile home had recently filled his propane tanks and was trying to light the stove in the trailer at the time of the explosion.

He said the man suffered facial burns and was taken to hospital, but it was "nothing life-threatening."

Richard said fire departments in Windsor and Hantsport responded to the call as well. One of the fire trucks, a pumper from Windsor, was involved in a collision with apassenger vehicle a short distance away while it was on its way with lights and sirens.

He said two firefighters were taken to hospital for observation, but there were no serious injuries from the collision. He said the truck will be out of service until it's repaired.

In an email, Nova Scotia RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jennifer Clarke confirmed there was a collision at the intersection of Highway 1 and Highway 14.

She said paramedics checked and cleared all four occupants of the passenger vehicle at the scene. Clarke said the driver was charged for failing to yield to an emergency vehicle with activated emergency equipment under the Nova Scotia Motor Vehicle Act.

'A great team effort'

Richard said police are investigating both the collision and the fire, and the fire department is happy to help with anything they might need.

He said crews spent about an hour and a half knocking down the flames, and he was pleased with how the three fire departments worked together.

"It was a great team effort, and everything went well as far as operations," he said.

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