MANSFIELD, Ohio — An Ohio firefighter has filed a civil lawsuit against a fire department for injuries he suffered while responding to a fire earlier this year.
Firefighter Josef Tadijanac filed the suit against Jefferson Township-Bellville Fire Department’s Chief Craig Roberts and two other firefighters from that department, according to the Mansfield News Journal.
In late June, Firefighter Tadijanac responded to a fire and was told to help pump water from one tanker to another. While he positioned himself at the rear of a Troy Township Fire Department tanker, the vehicle owned by the Jefferson Township Department, which was behind him, moved forward and pinned him in between the tankers.
The two firefighters from the Jefferson Township Department involved in the suit were operating the tanker.
Firefighter Tadijanac suffered above-the-knee amuputations, organ system failures, vision loss, and cognitive dysfunction, according to the suit, and is asking for at least $25,000 in damages.
The suit alleges that the firefighters operating the tanker were not properly trained and directly caused Firefighter Tadijanac’s injuries.