Denver fire chief promises transparency after department truck T-bones car, kills 1

Denver Fire Chief Desmond Fulton promised transparency Sunday as officials investigate a fatal crash in which a fire truck T-boned a car, killing one person and critically injuring two others.

“We want to be as transparent as we possibly can,” Fulton said during a Sunday news conference that was broadcast live by 9News.

Fulton said the fire department is cooperating with the police investigation into the crash, which happened at about 1:37 p.m. Saturday at the intersection of Speer Boulevard and North Broadway.

The fire crew was responding to an emergency call about smoke in a building and had their emergency lights and sirens on when the fire truck struck the driver’s side of a small two-door sedan with three people inside, Capt. Greg Pixley said.

The sedan was traveling south on North Broadway, and the fire truck was headed northwest on Speer.

After the collision, the firefighters immediately “recognized the severity” of the crash and began working to free victims from the sedan and provide care, Fulton said.

One person died at the scene and the two others were hospitalized in critical condition Sunday, Pixley said.

He said investigators are looking into whether the fire truck’s system for changing traffic lights was working and whether the light at the intersection had changed to green as the fire crew approached.

“Initial reports are that lights had changed at the intersection,” he said.

He could not say how fast the fire truck was going, and officials have not identified the person who died or offered any details about the two people who were injured.

Fulton called the crash a “tragic accident” and offered condolences to the loved ones of the person who died.

“It’s with a heavy heart I stand in front of you today,” he said.