Two Kentucky firefighters are in serious condition after attempting to help local college students complete the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.
USA Today reports Capt. Tony Grider, 41, and Simon A. Quinn, 22, were airlifted to University of Louisville Hospital after suffering severe burns from an electrical line that was too close to the fire truck’s aerial ladder.
Grider remains in critical condition at the University of Louisville Medical Center Burn Unit. Capt. Steve Marrs, 37, and Alex Johnson, 28, also sustained minor injuries, but no students were harmed.
"A number of our students, of course, the entire marching band, witnessed the event and so we're concerned about them and the tragedy of this accident," Campbellsville University president Michael Carter told USA Today.
The ALS Association’s Ice Bucket Challenge has helped raise awareness for the disease, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a disease that affects voluntary muscle movement. Sufferers progressively lose the ability to control their hands, eat, talk, walk and eventually breathe.
Since the Ice Bucket Challenge was launched on July 29, the ALS Association has raised more that $40 million in donations to help researchers find a cure and provide support for those suffering with the deadly disease.
ALS Association spokeswoman Carrie Munk explained to the New York Times how the Ice Bucket Challenge has helped their cause.
“While the monetary contributions are so absolutely incredible, and we’ll be able to really make a considerable difference in moving the mission of the A.L.S. Association forward, the real fortunate part of the Ice Bucket Challenge is the amount of awareness it has raised for the A.L.S. cause in general,” Munk said. “It puts us in a whole different ballgame to find treatments and cures for this disease.”
