A Virginia volunteer firefighter suffered severe injuries during a controlled fire in which he and two other firefighters — his brother and father — used department equipment without authorization.
Alex Byers, a volunteer with the White Oak Volunteer Fire Department, almost died in late May while attempting a controlled burn of yard waste in the backyard of a rural Stafford County home.
Byers fell into the fire and sustained third-degree burns to 22% of his body and spent a month and a half in the hospital, said his father, Capt. Patrick Byers.
Once released from the hospital, the community held a spaghetti dinner fundraiser and donated money to help him while he was out of work and recovering.
Now, Stafford County Fire and Rescue Chief Joseph Cardello is addressing details about what exactly happened. He said a county fire apparatus was used for personal use when it shouldn’t have been.
“We've addressed it through the disciplinary process,” he said. “In that way, I'm confident that this won't happen again."
The Byers took a brush truck and a tanker to their neighbor's house to help with the yard waste burn, Cardello said. The shift supervisor did not authorize the use of the county equipment and was not aware of it.
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“That's not the best use of taxpayer resources, and we shouldn't get in that position," Cardello said.
Capt. Byers admitted using the county fire equipment to help a neighbor.
"So, I took the brush truck out there in case it got out of hand, and that was it," he said.
He said he’s used county fire equipment for personal use before.
"I've done it over the years,” he said. “Now, I've learned that certain things aren't the way we did it in the past, and that's been handled."
The apparatus were not damaged in the fire, but county-owned personal protective equipment was, Cardello said. Had an emergency call come in and those apparatus were needed, the shift supervisor wouldn't have known where they were at, which could have put the public at risk.
“We acknowledge that there's a perception issue that we shouldn't be taking county resources out to do things like this, so we've addressed that," Cardello said.
Capt. Byers and his sons remain on the White Oak Volunteer Fire Department team as Alex Byers continues his recovery.
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