Passenger Trains > Driver in Fire Truck-Brightline collision fired

Angie DiMichele
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
(TNS)

Delray Beach Fire Rescue driver-engineer David Wyatt has been terminated, months after he drove across railroad tracks into the path of an oncoming Brightline train, the city announced Thursday.

City Manager Terrence Moore made the decision following an “in-depth administrative investigation” into the Dec. 28 crash, which left 15 people injured — 12 train passengers along with Wyatt and two of his fellow firefighters.

Wyatt, 46, received a noncriminal traffic citation after a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office investigation that concluded in February. The Sheriff’s Office found that though the fire truck was still responding to an emergency, Wyatt failed to use “due care” in that he “did not identify” the train as he drove the ladder truck into its path.

I wonder what is the likelihood of. The Driver would A. Sue to get his job back. Or B, get hired with another Fire Department?

Jerry Martin
Los Angeles, CA
Central Coast Railroad Festival

As someone from a department...I can say he can try and do a lawsuit, but I would guess that his union has tried all avenues for him to retain his job.  That usually speaks alot to an attorney. 

Also, it will be difficult to get hired for 2 reasons, 1) Credibility is shot and already shows bad judgement and 2) If he gets hired and the department's liability insurance does any checking (which they do) and find his history they will raise the rates for that department just because of him, since he totalled a million dollar ladder truck.  So it isn't looking good...

union dues , don't give the guy living expenses?

---

Good news.

How does Delray Beach,its FD, and the insurance company handle who is going to pay for a replacement fire truck and damage to railroad equipment ? 

joemvcnj Wrote:
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> How does Delray Beach,its FD, and the insurance
> company handle who is going to pay for a
> replacement fire truck and damage to railroad
> equipment ? 

With cash or a bank transfer. Checks are not accepted.

            Certainly took them long enough to figure out this extremely simple decision. The guy setting in the seat next to him should be canned too. Maybe his buddies that were injured need to sue his butt to help him remember what a moronic decision he made.

The captain who was sitting next to ff Wyatt was still on disability at last report. The battalion chief is now a captain, supposedly at his request. The head of standards and training retired.

The new chief of department who came from outside, is reorganizing the department.

Posted from Android

amtrak8 Wrote:
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> As someone from a department...I can say he can try and do a lawsuit, but I would guess that his
> union has tried all avenues for him to retain his job.  That usually speaks alot to an attorney. 

There would need to be some extenuating circumstances, such as a superior or more experienced firefighter telling him to GO! ether from the cab or over the radio. There could be some "culture problems" in the department that could be used as an excuse, but as you note, the union reps usually do a good job of bringing those issues forward.

I have read through several NTSB and ICC reports that highlight mistakes made, often noting issues such as lax safety cultures, employees afraid to speak up when asked to do something unsafe or other dangerous behavior that crews get away with most of the time ... until they end up in an NTSB report.

Has anybody heard what reason/excuse he offered for why he crossed the tracks?  "I didn't see the train."  "I thought I could beat it."  "I would have been OK if the engine had been running right." Other?

sf1010 Wrote:
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> Has anybody heard what reason/excuse he offered
> for why he crossed the tracks?  "I didn't see the
> train."  "I thought I could beat it."  "I would
> have been OK if the engine had been running
> right." Other?

None of the above. Surly his reason was "I'm enroute to an emergency, and I have the right-of-way over anybody and anything!".  So much for common sense.

HotWater Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

>
> None of the above. Surly his reason was "I'm
> enroute to an emergency, and I have the
> right-of-way over anybody and anything!".  So
> much for common sense.

The captain sitting in the right front seat made a short statement to investigators that he was putting on his gear, monitoring the radio about the fire, and left the driving to his driver.

Delray Beach Fire Rescue driver-engineer David Wyatt has been terminated, months after he drove across railroad tracks into the path of an oncoming Brightline train, the city announced Thursday.

City Manager Terrence Moore made the decision following an “in-depth administrative investigation” into the Dec. 28 crash, which left 15 people injured — 12 train passengers along with Wyatt and two of his fellow firefighters.

Wyatt, 46, was driving a $1 million ladder truck, with Capt. Brian Fiorey and firefighter Joseph Fiumara III as passengers, just before 11 a.m. that morning. On their way to a call of a fire at an apartment building, Wyatt drove over the tracks, despite the lowered gates and flashing red warnings lights, with the Brightline train barreling toward them at nearly 80 mph.

Wyatt received a noncriminal traffic citation after a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office investigation that concluded in February. The Sheriff’s Office found that though the fire truck was still responding to an emergency, Wyatt failed to use “due care” in that he “did not identify” the train as he drove the ladder truck into its path.

(Snip)

“I believe in fairness, due process, and accountability. And while I acknowledge that everyone is capable of making a mistake, this incident revealed a pattern of carelessness and poor judgment that went beyond an isolated error,” Moore said in the statement. “These actions — taken by an individual in a public safety position—placed lives at risk, compromised our operational readiness, and violated the principles of professionalism that our residents expect and deserve from public servants.

”Mahoney in his statement said the union as of Thursday had only received notice from the city about scheduling a hearing that is required “before any disciplinary action, including termination, can occur.

”“Our member has not been formally notified by the City. For the City to issue a public statement announcing his termination before this hearing has been conducted is not only premature, but also reflects a troubling disregard for the employee’s rights and the basic tenets of due process,” Mahoney said.
 
(Doesn’t say subscriber only, but it could be)
 
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/04/10/delray-beach-terminates-fire-rescue-driver-engineer-in-brightline-collision/