ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. -- Their jobs at the Arnold Air Force Base Medical Aid Station require Suzanne Hale, Amanda Van Pelt and Kelsey Rob to be proficient with stethoscopes, thermometers, imagers and other health care equipment.
It turns out they’re pretty handy with fire extinguishers, too.
When a truck recently caught fire in the Medical Aid Station parking lot, the trio quickly sprang into action. Hale phoned emergency responders while Van Pelt and Rob rushed outside, using extinguishers to douse the fire until Arnold AFB Fire and Emergency Services personnel arrived.
Hale, a medical assistant, Van Pelt, a nurse, and Rob, an X-ray technician, are employed through CORE Occupational Medicine, a company subcontracted by the Arnold Engineering Development Complex Test Operations and Sustainment Contractor to provide basic medical services to TOS employees at Arnold AFB, headquarters of AEDC.
Much of their work primarily involves physical examinations. What occurred on the morning of July 11 was anything but routine.
“It was the highlight of that day; the highlight of the week, pretty much,” Rob said.
At around 11 a.m., the truck that traverses Arnold weekly to shred paper dropped into bins placed across the installation made its regular stop at the Medical Aid Station. The driver entered the station to notify staff of his arrival and exited with the bin of collected paper.
Just a moment later, the driver reentered the Medical Aid Station. Rather than returning a now-empty bin, he proclaimed that his truck was ablaze.
“I saw flames,” Van Pelt said. “At first, I had gotten into the back of the truck, but the flames got bigger even after I was spraying so then I got out. I was like, ‘This was not good,’ so then I jumped back down. There were flames for sure. They’d kind of die down for a second and flare back up.”
The fire started in the back of the truck where the paper is shredded and stored for transport from Arnold.
As Hale called 911, Van Pelt and Rob rushed outside. On the way out, Rob pulled an extinguisher from the Medical Aid Station. The driver indicated he had an extinguisher in the cab of his truck, which was secured by Van Pelt. The duo used the extinguishers to help keep the fire at bay, pulling another extinguisher from the Medical Aid Station when fire-suppressing agents in the first had been exhausted.
Although the event was unexpected, the CORE team at the Medical Aid Station was prepared to respond to the fire. Rob said she had been taught how to use an extinguisher in school. Van Pelt said she received some fire response training from her time serving in the Navy. Hale was on the South Rutherford Volunteer Fire Department for 10 years as an auxiliary and, while not a firefighter, is quite familiar with fire response.
Arnold FES crews quickly arrived on the scene, using hoses to continue drenching the fire. The Arnold FES team also replaced the two fire extinguishers taken from the Medical Aid Station to combat the blaze.
“Their quick actions in a stressful situation, by calling 911 and grabbing an extinguisher, prevented the fire from spreading,” said Arnold FES Deputy Fire Chief Jim Evans. “This situation highlights the importance of having a fire extinguisher, knowing where it is located and how to use it. Their swift actions helped avoid what could have been a much larger fire.”
The origin of the fire was determined to be an auger in the truck.
“Just FYI, it was not our bin that caught the truck on fire because our stuff was still in the bin,” Hale joked.
“It wasn’t our fault,” Van Pelt chimed in.
Hale, Van Pelt and Rob concurred that the situation could have been much worse.
“Thankfully, it happened in the parking lot and not while he was driving down the road,” Van Pelt said.
The driver expressed his gratitude after the fire was put out and was able to drive the truck off base.
“He was pretty shaken up,” Van Pelt said. “He thanked us for helping and being proactive.”
With no injuries reported, they also agreed that those involved achieved the best possible outcome.
“We’re glad he’s okay,” Rob said of the driver.
“We’re glad we could help,” Hale added.