The San Francisco Fire Department has instituted a company-wide ban on helmet-mounted video cameras, six weeks after a fire truck was caught on film accidentally running over an Asiana plane crash survivor.
Chief Joanne Hayes-White banned video cameras in “any
department facility” in 2009 and clarified on Friday that the
order does, in fact, include helmet cameras.
Hayes-White said she needed to spell out the rule after Battalion
Chief Mark Johnson’s camera filmed a fire truck hitting and
killing 16-year-old Ye Meng Yuan, a survivor of Asiana Airlines
Flight 214, on July 6.
“There comes a time that privacy of the individual is
paramount, of greater importance than having a video,”
Hayes-White told the San Francisco Chronicle. “I think it’s
fairly clear. Without someone’s permission videos are not to be
taken.”
Video from Johnson’s camera shows Ye lying on the runway at San
Francisco International Airport, covered in flame retardant foam,
when the truck drives over her body.
“Obviously, we are heartbroken,” Hayes-White told NBC
after news of the crash made headlines around the world.
“We’re in the business of saving lives…It’s very difficult and
devastating news for all of us.”
The San Francisco Police Department is in possession of the tapes
and is investigating the aftermath of the crash, in which two
other passengers were killed. The San Francisco Chronicle
published still images from the footage, sparking conversation
about the fire department’s liability for the deaths. The
Chronicle reported that Johnson had not been informed that Ye was
lying on the runway.
Meanwhile, Hayes-White said Johnson has “been interviewed”
about possibly being in violation of the 2009
rule.
Hayes-White claims that video captured at the scene of an
emergency would breach the privacy of those involved,
particularly the victims. But other experts are questioning her
motive, asking why less information would be considered dangerous
if the department has nothing to hide.
Battalion Chief Kevin Smith says that Johnson should have been
told of Ye’s presence, whether she was alive or not. Smith is
president of the Black Firefighters Association — a group which
Johnson belongs to.
“The department seems more concerned with exposure and
liability than training and improving efficiency,” he said.
“Helmet cams are the wave of the future — they can be used to
improve communication at incidents between firefighters and
commanders….We are public servants, we serve the public — why be
secretive?”
Republished from: RT