Hanover firefighter faces long recovery after being ejected from a fire engine

With a hospital i.d. bracelet still on, a Hanover Fire Protection District firefighter is back at the station since a horrific scene on Tuesday.

“It’s just going to be a long road of recovery,” John Greene said. “I’m in a lot of pain right now.”

Extreme flash flooding washed away a piece of Old Pueblo Road near Birdsall Road early Tuesday morning.

Two cars fell into the sinkhole and the fire engine coming to rescue them, did too.

Greene, one of two firefighters ejected from the engine.

“I have a fracture on my cheekbone, I broke my nose and I have four compression fractures on my vertebrae,” Greene said.

Cheif Carl Tatum said he drove over that portion of Old Pueblo Road just two hours before the accident happened.

Tatum describes when he came to the scene.

“It looked like something out of Hollywood,” Tatum said.

Tatum grateful he’s planning recovery for his firefighters and not funerals.

“At the end of the day, nobody died and everybody’s alive. The recovery time may be a long time for a few of them but at least everybody’s walking,” Tatum said.

Greene wears the brace for support, grateful for the community’s support too, ready to serve, despite the injury.

“Hopefully, I’ll be back soon to help them again,” Greene said.

Firefighter Kenneth Holbert, the other firefighter who was also ejected from the fire engine has undergone two surgeries and is still in the hospital. Tatus said he’s in good spirits, but has a long road of recovery ahead of him as well, including long-term rehab and physical therapy beyond that.