January 11, 2009 Repair shop: We replaced air line on fire truck

BOSTON (AP) - The president of a North Attleborough repair shop said his company replaced a worn air line on a Boston Fire Department ladder truck that crashed into a high-rise Friday, killing a firefighter.

Timothy O'Neill, president of Greenwood Emergency Vehicles, said Ladder 26 was brought in for an annual ladder inspection in September. He said most of the repairs were associated with the truck's aerial ladder components.

He said the shop doesn't perform brake services on Boston fire trucks, but did replace the worn air line. He also said Ladder 26 was in his shop on two other occasions between the September inspection and the accident.

One was to repair a faulty electrical connection on the aerial ladder system, and the other was to repair damage from a December accident.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)