APPARATUS ROLLOVER WITH FIRE!

KY

Monday, June 22, 2009 From Firefighter Close Calls

What a father's day for one Central Kentucky family after a fiery crash almost claimed the lives of two brothers.
Sunday, Eli and John Carter of Bourbon County got the chance to go back to work and spend time with the man who inspired them to become first responders, their father Danny Carter.
"It's going to be a great father's day; it really is," said Danny Carter.
Eli and John were responding to a call early Saturday morning just inside Nicholas County when their fire engine veered off the road, slamming into a rock wall and flipping onto its top.
"When those big trucks start sliding, there's nothing you can do, but just hang on and hope for the best," said Eli Carter, who was driving the truck.
 The truck burst into flames once on its top, trapping the brother's inside.
"The doors were jammed, so we had to bust out the windows and crawl out as the flames were shooting into the cab," Eli said.
"I just started walking up the hill and my back started burning and I just fell to the ground," John Carter said.
John had to be air-lifted to UK hospital with what doctors thought might be a broken back. He ended up suffering just torn ligaments and muscles, and was walking early Sunday morning.
"I'm not sure if it was luck or faith, I just thank God I made it," he went on to say.
Their dad, Danny, who is also a volunteer firefighter, says he's feeling pretty lucky too.
"It could have been much worse, I'm thankful it wasn't," he said.
He went on to say it's a father's day he will not forget for many years.
"Yes, it's going to be a great father's day, they are walking and doing well, I couldn't ask for anything more."
State fire investigators will be in Millersburg this week trying to determine what caused the accident.
In the meantime, the volunteer Millersburg Fire Department is using its back-up truck to make emergency runs.