Emergency Response
Firefighting and rescue efforts were initiated almost immediately, but the airport fire department was understaffed and improperly equipped with the vehicles they were using from the 1940s. Their efforts were further hampered by a delay in getting assistance from the firefighting facilities at a nearby airbase, and from those in the city of Denver.
It was later found that seven months before the crash an FAA inspector had ruled that the airport fire department was deficient in emergency equipment, particularly water capacity, rate of discharge for foam, etc.
The fire crews were, however, praised on a personal level for their efforts.
Read more about this topic: United Airlines Flight 859
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