CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) – The Milwaukee fire chief has apologized after firefighters who put out a car fire failed to discover the body of a woman in the back seat before leaving the scene.
Fire Chief Aaron Lipski said the car was fully-engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived and the fire had spread to the exterior of a building.
He said a search of a burned car is the fire department’s responsibility and it failed. Lipski was straightforward when he addressed reporters about the incident.
“The Milwaukee Fire Department takes its duty to protect life and property very seriously, respecting humanity and human dignity always. As we clearly did not locate the deceased victim on this scene, we failed in protecting that human dignity. I also take that very seriously,” Lipski said.
The body was discovered after the vehicle was towed to a city lot.
CBS 58 in Milwaukee reported surveillance video caught the car hitting an electrical box and catching on fire and doesn’t show whether anyone got out. The fire then spread to a building.
The fire chief said about 25 fire department personnel are part of an investigation into how the body was overlooked.
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