Boston Ladder 14 fire truck narrowly avoids major crash enroute to fire in Brighton

By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff

The driver of a Boston Fire Department ladder truck managed to avoid a crash, swerving around a passenger car stopped directly in the vehicle’s path as firefighters were rushing to investigate a reported house fire in Brighton today.

Fire department spokesman Steve MacDonald said the Ladder 14 truck clipped the rear bumper of the passenger car, but caused no further damage during the 8 a.m. incident near 667 Cambridge St.

“There was a woman in the car in the left hand lane and a fire truck coming up behind her,’’ MacDonald said. “Rather than yield and move to the right, she stopped dead – and the (Ladder 14) driver had to swerve to the right to avoid her and clipped her bumper.’’

The truck did not complete its run to Wallingford Road where firefighters who did reach their destination found a small fire caused by burning food that was quickly extinguished, he said.

Ladder 14 was checked out by department mechanics, no damage was found and the vehicle was returned to service, he said.

The driver, a woman, was uninjured. MacDonald said. No firefighters were injured, he said.

According to MacDonald, Boston police officers cited the driver of the passenger vehicle for failing to yield to a public safety vehicle.

Boston police said the officers involved were still writing a report and could not immediately confirm that a traffic citation was issued to the driver.

MacDonald credited the driver of Ladder 14 for managing to prevent a potentially major crash. He said state law requires drivers to move out of the path of public safety vehicles by moving to the right, which does not happen as often as it should.

“The driver of Ladder 14 did a good job of not plowing into the car,’’ he said.