The Montrose Firetruck Crash: More Photos & Info

Photos by Justine Schmider

The site of today's big crash is shut down for at least another hour, according to Tommy Dowdy, district chief with HFD. Utility crews are working remove the power pole, he said, so they can tow away the ladder truck.

The injury total is nine firefighters and two civilians. Dowdy told Hair Balls that a woman on a bicycle, hit by the ladder truck, has the worst injuries.

"Do I know how badly? No," Dowdy said, "but she was hit by a fire truck."

Two firefighters who were sitting in the front of one of the trucks also had serious injuries. "Broken legs and broken limbs," Dowdy said.

The department doesn't know which fire truck driver caused the accident. The fire fighters in the pumper truck -- heading west on Westheimer during the crash -- had been at the grocery store when they received the emergency call and never returned to the station.

"We don't know if they just weren't looking for [the other truck]," Dowdy said. "We just won't know until we talk to the drivers."

The trucks, from different stations, were responding to a call at 2131 San Felipe, about a mile away from the crash site. There wasn't a fire; someone had smelled smoke and called it in.

More pictures after the jump.