Firefighter in hospital after fire engine collides with Middlesbrough railway bridge (From Darlington and Stockton Times)

Firefighter in hospital after fire engine collides with Middlesbrough railway bridge

4:25pm Monday 18th February 2013 in News By Graeme Hetherington

A FIREFIGHTER was treated in hospital after the fire engine he was travelling in collided with a railway bridge.

The collision happened this morning just after 11am on a bridge on the Middlesbrough to Thornaby rail line at Boundary Road, Middlesbrough, as the vehicle returned from an emergency call.

One member of the fire crew was taken to hospital for treatment for a fractured collar bone and the track remains closed as investigations are carried out.

Les Jones, head of community safety at Cleveland Fire Brigade said: "The appliance was on its return journey to Middlesbrough Fire Station from an incident at North Tees Hospital. One firefighter sustained a fractured collarbone and was taken to hospital but has now been released.

"We have started an internal health and safety investigation into the incident and we will be able to provide more details as soon as the investigation is completed."

A replacement bus service is in place between Middlesbrough and Thornaby as engineering assessments are carried out by Network Rail staff.

The work is expected to be completed overnight with normal services resuming in the morning.

A Network Rail spokesperson said: "We apologise to passengers who are inconvenienced by this incident. We will complete the repair and restore services as quickly as possible."

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