Freeburg Asst. Fire Chief Darryl Haller 48, said all things considered, he’s lucky to have come away from Friday afternoon’s rollover accident on Hwy. 63 in one piece.

“I just feel very blessed to be alive,” said Haller. “There were no serious injuries, and that’s the important thing. I’m just glad everyone is all right.”

Haller was driving the Freeburg Volunteer Fire Department’s newest fire truck, known as Rescue 1, with firefighter Danny Hilkemeyer, 20, of Freeburg, in the passenger seat. They were responding to a 911 dispatch for a motor vehicle accident just south of Rt. E on Hwy. 63 when the second accident occurred about a quarter mile north of Rt. JJ, just outside Freeburg.

Haller said reports of this being a head-on collision are not accurate. “When he tried to stop, there were cars in front of him, and he had a choice to make,” said Haller of Noah Boehm, 20, of Freeburg, who was driving the MFA truck. “Those vehicles are top-heavy, just like our fire truck, and when he was trying to stop, something caught, and it just threw him at a 90-degree angle across the road. I got over as far as I could but it all happened so fast, and there wasn’t much we could do. He did everything he could to try to stop. It’s just one of those things.”

According to the Patrol crash report, the accident occurred at approximately 12:55 p.m. Friday when Freeburg’s Rescue 1, a 2019 Freightliner, was northbound, responding to an emergency incident with lights and sirens activated.

The southbound vehicle, a 1996 International Harvester, driven by Boehm crested a hill, began slowing, and attempted to stop in order to avoid colliding with two vehicles which had pulled to the side of the roadway, having yielded to the Freeburg fire truck.

The Highway Patrol reported that Boehm’s vehicle began to slide, traveled off of the west side of the roadway, returned to the roadway, and crossed the center line into the fire truck’s lane of traffic. Boehm’s vehicle struck the fire truck, which had attempted to avoid collision by slowing and traveling off of the east side of the roadway.

After the collision, the fertilizer truck came to rest in the roadway, while the fire truck traveled off of the roadway, where it overturned and came to rest on its side.

There has been some speculation first as to why Freeburg Fire was dispatched to a non-injury accident, but the dispatch at 12:44 p.m. did not classify the call as non-injury.

“When we got the call for a motor vehicle accident, we respond quickly and tried to get there as fast as possible because we didn’t know what we would find,” said Haller. “We were coming in hot, and there was a firefighter ahead of us with lights and siren responding to the scene of the first accident.”

That vehicle was driven by Danny Redel. Behind Haller’s truck was Freeburg firefighter Brady Iven, driving Rescue 2, who left the firehouse immediately after Haller.

The call in question came in at 12:33 p.m., reported by the caller as a non-injury accident with lane blockage, to which Sheriff Mike Bonham and Capt. Travis Shaffer responded. They had just left intruder training at Fatima High School but were at the junction of Hwy. 133 and Hwy. 63 when they engaged.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported that the initial accident occurred when a 2016 Chevy Colorado driven by Bradley J. Heckman, 47, of Jefferson City, ran into the back of a northbound 2016 Ford F350 driven by Caleb A. Ward, 21, of Mokane, on Hwy. 63 at Lemar Lane, just south of Rt. E.

Radio traffic on the 911 recording of this accident, reviewed by the U.D., indicate that Maries Osage Ambulance District was dispatched at 12:41. Sheriff Bonham called for medical assistance as a precaution.

At 12:44, Bonham requested a truck from Tow Pro in Jefferson City, and asked 911 to dispatch Freeburg Fire at the same time. Bonham said as a result of the accident there was oil on the highway, creating an additional hazard.

“We needed Floor-Dry to soak up the oil, and Freeburg Fire is equipped to do that,” said Bonham. “I anticipated at least a half hour before Tow Pro could arrive on the scene.”

As it happened, a Tow Pro driver was on his way to Jefferson City from Vienna and came upon the accident only 10 minutes after the initial call.

“Since he had the materials we needed to soak up the oil, I advised dispatch to disregard Freeburg Fire,” said Bonham.

However, there is no such advisement heard on the 911 recording. Bonham explained in a subsequent interview that he was experiencing radio difficulties, which likely accounts for his request not being heard by dispatchers or recorded.

Regardless, there was no directive to Freeburg Fire to disregard the call.

“We were never told to disregard that call,” said Haller, who advised 911 that he was en route to the scene at 12:49. “We were still responding to the initial wreck.”

Iven can be heard on the 911 recording a few minutes later advising dispatchers of the fire apparatus being involved in a rollover accident, which resulted in the dispatch of fire crews from Westphalia and Vienna, the former to the first crash near Rt. E, and the latter to the secondary accident.

A second MOAD unit was also dispatched to the secondary scene, while a crew from Osage Ambulance District was en route to Bonham’s location at the first wreck.

The Patrol reported that Heckman suffered minor injuries but refused medical treatment.

Because the initial crash scene was under control, OAD proceeded to the secondary scene to assist.

Bonham can be heard at 12:59 advising 911 to disregard the crew from Westphalia Fire Protection District, which then proceeded to the secondary scene.

Haller and Hilkemeyer were transported to Jefferson City hospitals, and Boehm was taken to University Hospital in Columbia.

“We weren’t hurt very bad, but they wanted to check us out and make sure,” said Haller.

At this time, there is no estimate on the costs involved to replace the fire truck, which was totaled during the accident.