Eight firefighters were injured when two fire trucks collided in Paterson, New Jersey, Saturday evening.
The two Paterson Fire Department trucks were headed to a two-alarm blaze when they collided at about 6 p.m. local time, CBS New York learned. One of the fire trucks then careened into a supermarket.
“I was just shopping, and as I crossed the street, that’s when I heard it, and then I turned and saw,” Paterson resident Shameikz Sinclair said.
One firefighter was “severely injured,” Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh told CBS New York. The other seven suffered injuries believed to be minor.
“We have eight firefighters who are injured, one who is pretty severely injured, so we ask that people pray for that individual to make a full and speedy recovery,” Sayegh said.
Both fire trucks were headed to a two-alarm fire at an e-bike shop when the collision occurred, according to Paterson Public Safety Director Jerry Speziale.
“The whole interior of the first floor is completely burnt and damaged by fire,” Speziale said of the e-bike shop.
It’s unclear if anyone in the supermarket was hurt. The exact circumstances which prompted the collision were not confirmed.
Paterson is located about 15 miles north of Newark.