Firefighter hospitalized after battling Fontana brush fire
Firefighter hospitalized after battling Fontana brush fire
04 May 2011
published by www.sbsun.com
USA — A San Bernardino County firefighter was rushed to a local hospital Tuesday while fighting a vegetation fire.
The fire began about 2 p.m. in a grassy field in the 8600 block of Cherry Avenue. The fire spread to an area where tractors were parked and ignited three of them, according to a County Fire news release.
Firefighters from the County and Rancho Cucamonga Fire Departments brought the blaze under control in less that 30 minutes. The fire destroyed three tractors and about two acres of vegetation.
The wind shifted as firefighters fought the blaze, causing heat and smoke to blow in their direction. A firefighter experienced shortness of breath and a sore throat and his airway began to close after he inhaled smoke, according to the news release. The firefighter was taken to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center in Colton for treatment.
The firefighter remained in the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit Wednesday afternoon, but he is expected to make a full recovery, according to the news release.
Investigators say the cause of the fire is “suspicious.”
