Letter to Editor
To the Editor:
As the driver of the Florence "Blazing Trash Truck," I would like to correct several incorrect statements and misrepresentations made in the article, "Marion firefighters extinguish Florence trash truck blaze, Jan. 15, 2003. Please be aware that though I work for the City of Florence, these are my opinions only and is not an official statement from the City of Florence.
Mr. Sanders, City of Marion public works director's statement that "flames were shooting out of the back of the truck" is not only incorrect, but leaves the reader with the image of the vehicle flying down the road with nine foot long flames growing out of the rear of the truck. I don't know what Mr. Sanders' agenda for making this statement is, but it is not true. There was smoke coming from the rear of the vehicle.
I also take exception to both Mr. Sanders' and Mr. Soyez's statements that the church parking lot was the wrong place to dump it. They may have preferred that it had been dumped somewhere else, as would I. But the fact is that was the closest, safest location to unload it from the truck. I've learned through training and experience that when you are in an emergency situation, you quickly evaluate the situation and determine a course of action that will present the least chance of further harm to life and property. I don't know what turnip truck these two fell off of, but I also learned that except in the case of evident gross negligence, you do not second guess the person on the scene that has to make an emergency decision in a matter of split seconds.
I also find it unconscionable and irresponsible that a news reporter would write such an inflammatory (if you'll pardon the pun) article without contacting the only person that had all the actual facts and was the one that made the decision where the trash would be dumped. Me. I was not asked one single question in regard to the article that was written about this. I also find it curious that the entire focus of the article was where the load was dropped and not one word of caution to the reader's to be more aware of what they were placing out with their trash to prevent occurrences of this type.
The real facts of the matter are that I pulled up to the intersection by Casey's. As I came to a stop, a vehicle stopped beside me and I was told that there was smoke coming from the rear of my vehicle. Evaluating the situation as quickly as I could, I had the following options:
1) Drop the load immediately, right where the truck was. Not a viable option. I was in the middle of a busy street and it would have presented a considerable hazard to pedestrian and vehicular traffic.
2) I turned right onto the side street. Second option. Drop the load around the corner. Not a viable option. Not only would it have still presented a hazard to pedestrian and vehicular traffic, there are gas pumps 30 yards away.
3) I continued on down Freeborn. Third option. Drop the load further down Freeborn. Not a viable option. The street is lined with low hanging trees and vehicles parked along the street.
4) I turned left at the first block. Fourth option. Drop the load down this side street. Still not an option. Due to low hanging trees and vehicles parked along the street it still would have presented a greater hazard.
5) I knew there was a parking lot further down the street. I headed for it, and as I approached, evaluated it as the safest of the alternatives open to me. It had a large open area with no trees close, no vehicles parked in the lot and no structures close that would be endangered.
All of these options were evaluated and a decision of the safest alternative was arrived at in under a minute. I pulled into the center of the parking lot, dropped the load and moved the truck to a safe location, calling 911 as I was doing all of this.
I was asked by a pedestrian "What made you decide to dump that in my church parking lot? And who is going to clean up the mess?" Yes, I was fine and no one was hurt. Nice of the gentleman to show his Christian concern and compassion by asking. I replied that I had dropped the load there because it was the closest, safest alternative I had available. And that yes we would ensure that the area was cleaned up. I had already placed a call to Florence advising them of the situation and asking that they bring a skid steer, shovels and brooms to clean it up.
Mr. Sanders' first words to me when he arrived were also, "Why did you dump that here?" My reply was the same. It was the closest, safest alternative I had. Mr. Sanders' reply was, "You should have dumped it right there on Main Street." On Main Street. Right. It's nice to see that by the time the article made it into print, that more intelligent heads prevailed and they have asked that if this happens in the future, that the load be dropped on a side street. Which I would have gladly done, had a safe location been available to me. I've since learned that Mr. Sanders attends that very same church. Nice to see that Christian compassion is alive and well in Marion. I wonder if he would have had such grave concerns had I dumped it in the IGA parking lot.
The fire was extinguished by the Marion Fire Department, which handled it promptly and professionally. Then my boss, myself and a third person from the City of Florence used brooms, shovels and the skid steer to clean it up. When we left, other than the water on the parking lot, you could not have told that anything had happened there.
Had I to do it all over again, given the exact same circumstances, I would have done exactly as I did. Having spoken with several members of the Marion Fire Department, they also indicated that the location where I dropped it was ideal because there were no hazards near the fire. I made the correct decisions for the situation. I also find it curious that in previous incidents (of which I am aware of at least three) that did involve City of Marion trash trucks with fires in the rear of the truck, such an issue was not made of it. Or is it just more of the Marion city workers trying to be the tail that wags the dog? It is quite evident that since the county took over administration of the transfer station, the City of Marion will use any opportunity they can to point fingers and throw the worst possible light on every situation. And unfortunately, the Record was duped into assisting them.
Rick Burcky, Florence
