WASHINGTON — “Faulty brakes” could have played a role in a crash involving a D.C. fire truck and a police car earlier this month.
The crash happened on Oct. 5 on Porter Street in Northwest D.C.
Now, D.C. Fire and EMS says it has received a police report that points to the fire truck’s braking system as the problem. An independent review found “an imbalance in the braking system that pulled the vehicle to the left.”
According to the department, a crew notified the Apparatus Division about an air leak from the braking system on the day of the crash, but it was not enough of a problem to take the truck out of service.
The fire truck had last been towed in August 2014.
“We will continue to test our apparatus to ensure that their braking systems are fully functional and allow our vehicles to stop safely,” Chief Gregory Dean said in a written statement.
