A Morongo Valley fire engine was heavily damaged in a collision early Sunday morning. According to Fire Chief Peale, Brush Engine 461 and Patrol 461 had responded to a rollover traffic collision on the side of the Morongo Grade about 12:30 a.m. Sunday morning. The vehicle involved in the rollover crash had landed on its roof. The driver, who was uninjured, got out of the car on his own and walked down the grade to get cell phone reception to call 911, and then met firefighters back at the scene.Per protocol, firefighters parked Brush Engine 461 diagonally across the lane of traffic to protect the scene, firefighters, and victims. While firefighters were assessing the driver from the overturned vehicle, they heard tires screeching, which alerted them to a Chevy Suburban which was driving towards them and braking. The Suburban was not able to stop in time and crashed into the fire engine. There were no injuries to firefighters. One occupant in the Suburban received minor injuries and was taken to a local hospital. The driver of the overturned vehicle refused medical care and was released at the scene. The California Highway Patrol is investigating.
Updated 9 a.m. March 14 with additional details.
MORONGO VALLEY FIRE ENGINE DAMAGED IN COLLISION SUNDAY
