Georgia Tech officer involved in wreck released from hospital

A Georgia Tech police officer injured in a wreck near the campus was released from Grady Memorial Hospital Monday afternoon.

The officer's cruiser slammed into the back of an 1,800-gallon tanker truck loaded with diesel fuel at the intersection of Pine Street and Centennial Olympic Park Drive shortly before 8 a.m. Monday, according to Atlanta fire Deputy Chief Chris Wessels.

Georgia Tech spokesman Matt Nagel told the AJC that Officer Joseph Figura was responding to a call for assistance from an Atlanta police officer when he collided with the truck.

The Atlanta officer was struggling with a suspect on Ivan Allen Boulevard, according to Atlanta police spokeswoman Kim Jones.

"The police cruiser was very entangled with the tanker truck," Wessels told the AJC. "We had to utilize two of our extrication companies to disentangle the cruiser from around the police officer."

Firefighters finally freed Figura and took him to Grady Memorial Hospital about 8:35 a.m. He was treated and released several hours later, according to Nagel.

Nagel said Figura has been with the Georgia Tech police force for three years.

The tanker truck's driver, Terry Lamar Martin, was not injured, Jones said.

Fire crews also had to contend with a small leak of diesel fuel from the truck, Wessels said.

"We had some minor leaks from the tanker, but it was from the piping that’s used to distribute the fuel; it wasn’t from the tank itself," Wessels said.

He said his crews were fortunate that the tanker wasn't hauling gasoline, which is more flammable than diesel.

"We kept a constant watch on the tank, and had the tank started leaking more, it would have changed our tactics,
Wessels said. "We would have been more rapid with the extrication and utilized foam and things like that."