FRESNO, Calif. — The Fresno (Calif.) Fire Department released a 274-page report nearly a year after Captain Pete Dern fell through the roof of a burning home.
ABC30 reported that several problems were pointed out in the report, including Capt. Dern’s gear since he wasn’t fully protected at the time of the fall. The department doesn’t have a policy for risk assessment or a procedure specific to residential garage fires. Rooftop training also appeared to be limited in regards to recognizing roof construction.
“We have an opportunity here to drill down further into this incident and look at our organization — our culture, our safety practices, our communications, our command and control, all of those factors,” Fire Chief Kerri Donis said.
Chief Donis said there’s also an issue with the firefighting culture since caution tends to be overlooked in the rush to put out the flames, according to the report.
“We’re firefighters, we have servants hearts ... we want to help and sometimes we do that at our own peril to try to affect a rescue,” Chief Donis said.
She said the report isn’t about blame, but should be viewed as a handbook to guide firefighters and prevent another accident from happening.
Capt. Dern, who suffered second- and third-degree burns over 70 percent of his body, is making progress since the fall. He has undergone 19 surgeries and over 50 dressing changes for his burn injuries.