Captain Ralph Stott Jr.

Captain Stott and other members of his Dept responded to a reported structure fire in a automobile body shop. Captain Stott was in command of an engine company.

The first engine company to arrive reported a working fire with heavy smoke showing. Upon their arrival, Captain Stott and his crew deployed a 1 inch handline into the front door of the structure. The on-duty battalion chief arrived on the scene and conducted a size-up of the building.

The chief decided to switch to a defensive mode of operations. The Incident Commander attempted to contact Captain Stott and the other firefighter on the handline but was unsuccessful. A lieutenant entered the building and brought Captain Stott and his firefighter to the exterior. The Incident Commander then ordered Captain Stott and his firefighter to the rear of the building with their handline for exposure protection. As the Incident Commander and Captain Stott walked in front of the building, a structural collapse occurred. Captain Stott was buried in the debris.

Firefighters immediately began to dig through the rubble looking for Captain Stott. He was located and removed from the pile. CPR was initiated immediately and Captain Stott was transported to the hospital. Due to the massive injuries inflicted on Captain Stott when he was crushed by the structural collapse, he was pronounced dead at the hospital. The cause of death was listed as blunt force trauma to the head and chest.

An employee of the body shop was arrested and charged with murder and 2 counts of arson resulting in serious bodily injury.

For more info see NIOSH report

http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/fire/reports/face200244.html