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Tarentum firefighter dies after falling from truck
Thursday, November 04, 1999 By Johnna A. Pro, Post-Gazette Staff Writer
At noon yesterday, the flags at the Highland Hose Fire Co. in Tarentum flew at half-staff.
A single black wreath hung on the door.
Inside, grim-faced firefighters sat huddled on a couch, comforting each other mostly in silence. The women there sobbed softly.
Just five hours earlier, their longtime comrade, Michael Sims, had died of the injuries he sustained in an accident while responding to a fire call Tuesday night.
Sims, 38, one of six volunteers answering the alarm in neighboring East Deer, fell from the fire engine's jump seat just a few yards from the firehouse doors. He died of head injuries at UPMC Presbyterian.
"He loved the fire department and was very enthusiastic about the fire department," said Assistant Chief Pat Wood. "He'll be greatly missed by this fire company and this community."
Wood said that just after 7 p.m. Tuesday, the company was dispatched to what would later turn out to be a false alarm in East Deer.
Along with a fellow volunteer, Sims climbed into the open-cab jump seat on the passenger side of the vehicle, which had seat belts and a metal safety door.
The firefighter driving the truck pulled out of the garage, made a right onto East Eighth Avenue and then a quick left down the hill onto Corbet Street.
"We've done it a hundred times before," Wood said.
This time, though, Sims fell out of the cab and struck his head on the pavement.
It is not clear if he was properly strapped into the seat or if the safety door had been properly latched, and Wood said he did not feel comfortable answering questions about those details yesterday.
The accident is under investigation by Allegheny County detectives and the coroner's office.
"He fell off the right side and onto the street," said Wood. "[The truck] wasn't going fast or anything."
Wood said no one else saw Sims fall, but the volunteer riding across from him, who had been looking the other way, heard him hit the ground. The driver of the fire truck stopped and firefighters began medical treatment.
According to the fire department, the 1965 Mack ladder truck was renovated three years ago to make it more safe.
Marko Bourne, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and for state Fire Commissioner David L. Smith, said open-cab trucks such as the one used by the fire company are no longer produced, but many are still being used.
The National Fire Protection Association requires manufacturers to produce only apparatus with enclosed cabs.
However, it's not unusual for companies like Highland Hose to have older equipment since the life span of the trucks can be anywhere from 20 to 30 years, if not longer.
In rural areas, in particular, where trucks are rarely used, they can last many years, Bourne said.
"We are in a period now where a lot of the older apparatus is being phased out," Bourne said. "But the age of the apparatus will vary widely from municipality to municipality. There is no median. Certainly with the size of the fire service in Pennsylvania, there are some old vehicles out there."
The state has 2,400 fire companies, all but 50 of which are volunteer.
Bourne said that statewide one or two firefighters are killed in some type of vehicle accident each year.
Mr. Sims was a 20-year veteran of the Highland Hose Co. where his father, James A. Sims, and four uncles also volunteer. He was a past president of the fire company.
In addition, he was a member and past president of the Fraternal Order of Eagles in Tarentum; manager of the Highland Little League; a member of various firefighter organizations and a 1979 graduate of Highlands High School.
He was a self-employed furniture refinisher currently working under contract at West Interiors.
He enjoyed bowling, golfing, hunting, fishing and camping.
In addition to his father, Mr. Sims is survived by his wife, Grace Ann Johnson Sims; his mother, Elisabeth Dormann Sims of Tarentum; two sons, Michael J., and Jared, both at home; and two sisters, Christine Denny of Frazer and Robin Fox of Natrona Heights.
Visitation will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. today and from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. tomorrow at Albert H. Duster Funeral Home, 347 E. 10th St., Tarentum. The firefighter services will be at 7:30 tomorrow in the funeral home.
The funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday in First United Presbyterian Church, Tarentum. Burial with full firefighter honors will follow at the Mount Airy Cemetery in Natrona Heights.
The family suggests contributions to the Highland Hose Co., 401 E. Eighth Ave., Tarentum 15084.
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