Obion Co. Fire Fighter Out of Hospital After Chemical Fire
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One fire fighter from the Town of Obion is still in the hospital Friday, and another was just released. That is about 48 hours after fire officials say a chemical fire burned their throat and lungs. A farm truck pulling a spreader filled with ammonium nitrate fertilizer caught fire in the Town of Obion. There is a story behind fire fighter Jonathan Tolley’s cough. Tolley adds, “It feels like someone is pressing down on your chest.” It started with a fertilizer truck breaking down in Obion, catching on fire, and then releasing more than 2.5 tons of toxic chemicals into the air. Fire Chief Jamie Evans, says, “The worst is nitric acid, which is thee worst chemical that a human being can come into contact with.” Tolley and another fire fighter, who is still in the hospital, felt the brunt of the accident, as their throat and lungs are still burning on this day. Chief Evans says, “This is the first time in our history that I can remember having to air lift a fire fighter to a trauma center after a fire.” The men were relentless in fighting the fire because less than 500 yards away, sat the community of Glass. Chief Evans adds, “As a precautionary measure we evacuated a one square mile area around the fire.” But as they were evacuating, to add insult to injury, says Chief Evans, John McDaniel, 49, ignored their barricades. Chief Evans says, “We looked up and saw a car accelerating toward us. The driver made eye contact with me and then actually accelerated instead of braking.” Chief Evans was not seriously injured. McDaniel is now charged with two counts of reckless endangerment. It is a bothersome day the fire fighters say that they will chalk up to a learning experience. Chief Evans adds, “In hindsight if I could do anything different, we would have backed off and let the fire burn itself out. There’s no house or anything out there that’s more important at the end of the day than making sure my guys come home, and that didn’t happen with this fire.” Chief Evans says he credits multiple surrounding agencies and their quit wit for preventing the situation from becoming worse. McDaniel is out on bond. He will face a judge next week.
