Trapped Woman Extricated With New Equipment & Propane Tanker Report

GARDEN CITY, Utah. July 18, 2013.  Garden City Fire District board meeting.  Present were Terry Allen, Randall Knight, Christina Gracey, Travis Hobbs.  Absent: Ben Negus

Photo by Mike Wahlberg

In addition to essential but routine and normal department service, there were two major events during the month, both of which demonstrated the increased skill and training of the department.  On July 7, the department was called to the east side of the lake to help extricate a severely injured woman trapped under her wrecked car.  The new extrication equipment proved to be essential. Mike Wahlberg, of the fire department ,said that “it was highly likely that without the new equipment the woman would have died on the scene.”  After extrication she was taken by a life flight helicopter to a Wasatch front hospital and is recovering.

In a second incident on July 13, a propane truck with 9700 gallons of propane overturned in Laketown Canyon.  The tank had a puncture and began to vent propane.  The highway was closed for more than a day as firefighters sprayed more than 40,000 gallons of water on the tank to warm it up so that it would continue to vent.  Lightning in the area made off loading the propane unsafe.  Refilling the 5,000 gallon water tender 7 times during the night brought attention to the need to be able to refill and empty the water tender more rapidly than was expected.  Using cost-of-accident funds paid by the insurance company of the overturned tank the department will add a more powerful pump and auxiliary equipment to the tender.  Approximately 10 firefighters, including HAZMAT trained members, spent 24 hours working on the scene.

An independent audit review of the department for 2012 indicated sound management of all funds and Tiffany Wahlberg, CPA and accountant for the district was commended by the independent CPA firm for her excellent work.