On February 9, 2007, the City of Baltimore and the Baltimore City Fire Department (BCFD) experienced a tragic loss when Racheal Wilson, a Firefighter Paramedic Apprentice (FPA) and a member of FPA Recruit Class 19, suffered fatal injuries during a training exercise. The BCFD initiated an investigation of the incident and released its preliminary report on February 22, 2007. The report listed 36 potential violations of the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) 1403, Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions, 2002 Edition.

On February 22, 2007, The Honorable Sheila Dixon, Mayor of Baltimore, announced during a press conference that she was initiating an independent investigation into the events that occurred on February 9. Mayor Dixon requested the assistance of the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services (HCDFRS) and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to investigate the incident.

R. Chris Shimer, Deputy Chief of HCDFRS Emergency Medical Services and Training Section, was chosen by Mayor Dixon to lead the investigation, with support from Gregory Gant, Special Agent in Charge of the Baltimore Division of the ATF. The investigation was initiated on February 26 and concluded with the presentation of this report to Mayor Dixon.

The investigative team found many of the same violations and contributing factors as were noted in BCFD’s preliminary investigation. The team determined that there were 50 issues which it considered to be violations of NFPA 1403 and other related factors that contributed to this tragic event. Those violations and contributing factors are detailed in the ensuing report.