Cracker Box Fire ATV Loading Accident 2016

On August 9th 2016, a crew assigned to the Cracker Box Fire on the Mogollon Rim Ranger District were loading an All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) and a Utility Task Vehicle (UTV) onto a trailer in preparation for that day's operations. During the loading of the second vehicle, the ATV, the front tire of the vehicle contacted the already-loaded UTV and flipped over, throwing the operator to the ground with the ATV coming to rest on top of the operator. The attending employees immediately rendered aid to the operator whose chief complaint was pain through the middle back area. The employee was transported to the Flagstaff Medical Center by agency personnel where he was admitted and subsequently underwent surgery to repair a fractured vertebra in the thoracic region.  The surgery included: fusing the 10th thoracic vertebra to the 9th thoracic vertebra, and the 12th thoracic vertebra to the 1st lumbar vertebra. He was released from the hospital five days later. Three days after that, he returned home to his parents, with follow-up scheduled with an orthopedic surgeon near his home.

Equipment, RLS, Driving, All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) Incident