Colorado Springs Firefighter recovering from injury sustained while on duty

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO)-- A Colorado Springs firefighter is recovering after getting injured on duty while responding to a fire in downtown Colorado Springs on Nov. 19.

The Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD) was responding to a fire in an abandoned building in off of Sierra Madre Street. The fire was near the US Olympic and Paralympic Museum, and flames were shooting from the roof.

CSFD says that one of the firefighters injured his ankle shortly after arriving while responding to the call, hurting his ankle while getting off the fire engine. He was taken to the hospital.

A CSFD lieutenant said that a fire can double in size in sixty seconds, so one wrong step can greatly impact fighting it.

“We teach our new newer firefighters that being slow is sometimes being fast inevitably though there a level of risk to what we do and something as simple as getting out of the apparatus with all the extra gear and weight of our equipment can be a factor," said Lieutenant Joey Buttenweinser.

There were no other injuries in the fire, and fire crews were able to get the flames under control quickly.

CSFD is investigating the cause of the fire.