Firefighters memorial

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As of 05/19/2008, 102 Fire Fighters have lost their live in the line of duty in 2002, 4 from New Jersey.
12/12/02	Jonathan Lanphear	Volunteer
12/07/02	Henry Wissel, 55	Volunteer	Carnegie, PA Chief Wissel collapsed while operating the water pumps at a fire that destroyed an automotive garage and residence. Death has been attributed to a heart attack.
12/05/02	Dennis Harris, 43	Volunteer	Tellico Plains, TN Died of cardiac arrest while operating a pumper to fight a house fire.
12/05/02	Michael DePauw, 51	Career	Dallas, TX Official cause is pending ruling of Medical Examiner. Preliminary cause was "heart attack.
12/04/02	Kerry Neis, 31	Career	Fort Rucker, AL F/F Neis was participating in a training incident related to extinguishing aircraft type fires when he was struck and killed by fire apparatus.
11/25/02	Randall Carpenter, 46 Jeffery E. Common, 30 Robert Hanners, 33	Career Volunteer, on call	Coos Bay, OR Died as a result of an explosion and subsequent roof collapse while working a fire at an auto body shop in downtown Coos Bay.
11/18/02	Bruce Fletcher	Volunteer	Ashford, CT Chief Fletcher died from an apparent heart attack shortly after returning to the fire station from an ambulance call.
11/12/02	Patrick Brooks, 38	Career	West Hartford, CT Brooks was on-duty at the fire station when he suddenly became ill. He was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead from causes still to be determined
11/10/02	Robert Poore, 71	Volunteer	Briceville, TN Poore died from an apparent heart attack while performing debris removal and clean-up after a tornado.
11/04/02	Edmund Malinski	Volunteer	Lakewood PA F/F Malinski died while fighting a structure fire in the community of Lakewood. An investigation and autopsy is underway to determine the cause of death.
11/01/02	Timothy DiOrio, 36	Volunteer	Coal Township, PA Lieutenant DiOrio became trapped under debris from a collapsed wall at a residential structure fire in Trevorton Borough. He was pronounced dead on the scene.
10/24/02	Rupert Allen Fuller, 76	Volunteer	Westville, FL Fuller had responded to an emergency medical call (head injury) and soon after arrival on scene complained that he was not feeling well. Fuller was rendered aid by an ALS unit and transported to the hospital where was treated for an aneurysm and died several days later.
10/24/02	Gerald Nadeau, 51	Career	Fall River, MA While working as incident commander at a major structure fire under heavy smoke conditions on 09/19/2002, Chief Nadeau suffered inhalation of toxic and noxious gases and fumes. He complained of breathing difficulties and visited medical professionals for care. The condition worsened and he was admitted to the hospital where he died of acute respiratory distress syndrome.
10/11/02	Kenneth Taylor, 49	Career	Madisonville, KY Captain Taylor died in the hospital from a heart attack he had suffered two days earlier while working an apartment building fire.
10/01/02	George Batelli, 55	Volunteer	Garfield, NJ F/F Batelli died while en-route to a structure fire from an apparent heart attack
09/30/02	Ralph Stott, 52	Career	Terre Haute, IN Captain Stott was fighting a fire at a garage and auto body shop when there was a large explosion causing debris and a facade to collapse forward on several firefighters, including Stott, who was trapped under large cement blocks killing him.
09/23/02	Cassandra Powell	Career	McLeansville, NCF/F Powell was involved in routine duties, en-route between stations when the vehicle she was driving ran off the right side of the road. As the vehicle was steered back onto the road it overturned, pinning the victim in the cab. The accident resulted in severe trauma to the head and the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
09/14/02	Michael Kruse, 53	Career	Muscatine, IA F/F Kruse became trapped when a structural collapse of the roof occurred. Firefighter Kruse was rescued and transported to the hospital where he later died
09/10/02	Roger McMillin, 44	Volunteer	Martin, SD Assistant Chief McMillin was overcome by toxic fumes (later found to be hydrogen sulfide) while trying to rescue a worker at a feed mill who had fallen face down into a soybean molasses vat. Rescuers were unable to revive McMillin. He was transported to the hospital where both he and the worker he was attempting to save were pronounced dead.
09/05/02	Jason Hampton, 19	Volunteer	Smyrna, TN F/F Hampton was killed while operating a tanker truck in response to a brush fire when the apparatus left the roadway and crashed.
09/03/02	Joseph Craft, 33	Volunteer	Penn Hills, PA F/F Craft died of heart failure (a congenital heart defect, tetralogy of Fallot with pulmonary atresia) after returning from a call.
08/30/02	Harold Coons, 76	Volunteer	Hudson, NY Captain Coons was assisting with traffic and the set up of a medevac landing zone at the scene of a major traffic accident when he collapsed and died from an apparent heart attack.
08/17/02	William H. Goodrich, 56	Volunteer	Allison Park, PA As the first on scene of a residential structure fire (one block from his home), Assistant Chief Goodrich encountered an attic fire, entered the building for size up, then exited the building and assumed command of the incident. While performing command activities, Assistant Chief Goodrich collapsed at the scene of an apparent heart attack. He was treated at the scene and transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.
08/01/02	David Martin, 48	Volunteer	Opal, SD While fighting a prairie fire, Firefighter Martin fell off the back of a firefighting vehicle into the fire. Martin was severely burned and died from his injuries several days later in the burn unit at Regions Hospital in St. Paul.
07/30/02	Leonard Knight, 51	Career	USDA Forest Service Pilot Knight was the only person on board of a helicopter being used to drop water on hotspots of a recently controlled 4,400-acre fire near Rocky Mountain National Park. Due to a cause still to be determined, the aircraft crashed killing him.
07/30/02	John Mickel, 32 Dallas Begg, 20	Career	Kissimmee, FL F/F Begg and Lt. Mickel were killed during a live-fire training exercise. Details of the incident are pending a full investigation.
07/28/02	Steven Oustad, 51 Heather DePaolo, 29 John Self, 19	Career	Yreka, CA A wildland fire crew of 5 was monitoring a 500-acre backfire near Happy Camp, California, when their crew-cab pickup equipped with a 500-gallon water tank left the roadway and rolled 800 feet down a steep slope. Three firefighters were killed and two others injured in the incident.
07/05/02	Barry Dockter, 44	Volunteer	Anamoose, ND F/F Dockter was working with the Anamoose Fire Department at the Drake Centennial fireworks show when he was struck by an errant fireworks shell and died the following day from the injuries he sustained.
07/03/02	Andrew Waybright, 24	Career	Frederick, MD F/F Waybright was with 12 other firefighter recruits on their 3rd day of training and had completed a jog, performed calisthenics, and was on a return jog to the training facility when he collapsed and soon thereafter died. The state medical examiner's office determined that the cause of death was heat exposure.
07/04/02	Thomas Stewart, 30 James Sylvester, 31 John West	Career Volunteer Volunteer	Gloucester, NJ Trapped in collapse at residential structure fire.
07/02/02	Alan Wayne Wyatt, 51	Career	US Forest Service F/F Wyatt died from injuries received when a green tree fell and struck him while he was in the process of cutting “hazard trees.
07/01/02	Kim Granholm, 29	Volunteer	Esko, MN Captain Granholm was fatally injured while working a vehicle fire with his wife, who is also a member of the department. An inattentive driver, who left the scene and was later arrested, triggered the chain-reaction accident by striking from behind several emergency and private vehicles on the right shoulder of Interstate 35 killing Granholm and injuring two other firefighters, an Esko police officer, and two motorists.
06/30/02	Richard Cusson, 32	Volunteer	Danielson, CT F/F Cusson was killed while driving to the South Killingly firehouse to get his gear when he lost control of his privately owned vehicle and broadsided a telephone pole.
06/17/02	Steven Wass, 42 Craig Labare, 36 Michael Davis, 59	Pilot Co-Pilot Engineer	U.S. Forest Service Just after the crew had dropped it’s load of fire retardant on a wildland blaze near Walker, CA, all three members died when the C-130 air tanker under contract to the U.S. Forest Service broke apart in flight and crashed.
06/14/02	Paul Jolliff, 37	Career	Indianapolis, IN F/F Jolliff drowned while participating in water rescue training as a beginning diver enrolled in a six-week course.
06/13/02	Bridgett Autry, 18	Volunteer	Clinton, NC F/F Autry died from traumatic injuries sustained after being involved in a motor vehicle crash while responding to a fire alarm. She was thrown from the vehicle and was later pronounced dead at Sampson Regional Medical Center in Clinton.
05/31/02	Robert Broussard, 59	Career	El Cajon, CA F/F Broussafter collapsed and died from cardiac arrest while taking the annual Pack Test for wildland firefighting certification.
05/27/02	Terry Stinson, 44	Career	Mooresville, IN F/F Stinson had just returned to the station from working an EMS call when he collapsed from a heart attack. Co-workers at the station immediately rendered medical aid and Stinson was transported to the hospital where he passed away several days later.
05/29/02	Gerald Allbritton, 45	Career	Columbus,MS Engineer Allbritton died in his sleep at the fire station soon after returning from an emergency call.
05/22/02	Sekou Turner, 28	Career	San Leandro, CA F/F Turner suffered a heart attack while working an EMS incident.
05/14/02	Jeremy Brown, 27	Volunteer	Sylvania, GA F/F Brown was responding to a call in his private vehicle when he suffered an apparent heart attack and was involved in a one-car accident.
11/23/82	Joseph Tynan, 55	Career	Brookline, MA F/F Tynan succumbed to complications due to injuries received in the line of duty on November 23, 1982 when he fell from a piece of apparatus while responding to an alarm and sustained a severe head injury.
05/06/02	Thomas Kickler, 38	Volunteer	Laurens, SC F/F Kickler, who also served as Assistant Chief with the Pelham-Batesville Fire Department (Career), died at his home of a massive heart attack a short time after working a doublewide mobile home fire as a volunteer firefighter with the Laurens County FD. While on the fireground, Kickler mentioned that he didn't feel well and thought he might be sick.
05/04/02	Christopher Kangas, 14	Jr FF	Brookhaven, PA Junior Firefighter Kangas was responding on his bicycle to a fire incident when he was struck by a vehicle and died from injuries sustained, including head trauma, a few hours later.
05/03/02	Derek Martin, 38 Robert Morrison, 38	Career	St. Louis, MO Captains Martin and Morrison died while trying to rescue a trapped firefighter inside of a burning two-story brick refrigeration company building.
04/27/02	John Nuber, 56	Career	Erie, PA F/F Nuber reported to the fire department for work and was relieved of duty a short while later when he stated that he was feeling ill. Soon after arriving back home he complained about chest pains and EMS was called, however before they arrived Firefighter Nuber had suffered a cardiac arrest and attempts by EMS personnel to revive him were unsuccessful.
04/13/02	William J. Tripp, 28	Volunteer	Richford, NY F/F Tripp died at the Cayuga Medical Center in Ithaca after he collapsed at the scene of a motor vehicle accident while laying flares to assist with traffic.
04/11/02	Earl Hemphill, Chief, 61	Career	Russell, KS Chief Hemphill was struck and killed at the scene of a motor vehicle accident by a piece of fire apparatus arriving upon the scene.
04/10/02	William Jackson Beard Jr, 56	Career	Greensboro, NC While participating in a live fire training exercise, Captain Beard collapsed of apparent cardiac arrest.
03/27/02	Fred Johnson, 71	Volunteer	Abingdon, Va, F/F Johnson experienced secondary chest pains and cardiac arrest during a training session.
03/25/02	Allen Frye, 31	Volunteer	Roslyn Heights, NY F/F Frye was killed and another firefighter injured at a training drill when a private vehicle crossed through road barriers and struck them as they were stowing equipment.
03/16/02	Clarence Birchmore, 60	Volunteer	Whiting, VT Chief Birchmore was responding to an alarm in his personal vehicle when he suffered a heart attack enroute. His car was found along the side of the road by Vermont State Police who were also responding to the call.
03/18/02	Joan Spear, 46	Career	Dillon, MT Supervisor Spear was participating in fitness training when she collapsed and died from a cause still to be determined.
03/16/02	Leon Swank, 50	Volunteer	Bellville, OH Lt. Swank died from an apparent heart attack while returning to the station from a residential structure chimney fire.
03/07/02	John Ginochetti, 41 Timothy Lynch, 28	Career Career, Volunteer	Manlius, NY F/F Paramedics Ginocchetti and Lynch had finished venting the roof of a burning residence on a mutual aid response call whey they were asked to assist in fighting the fire inside the house. As they pulled a line into the residence the kitchen floor collapsed, sending the two firefighters into the basement where they were overcome and died from burns and smoke inhalation.
03/04/02	Joshua Earley, 22	Volunteer	Harrisburg, NC F/F Earley died as a result of burns received at the scene of a structure fire when, while advancing a line into the first floor of the house, the wooden floor gave way and Earley fell into the basement.
03/04/02	Richard Dake, 48	Volunteer	LaGrange, KY F/F Dake was participating in a training exercise. While returning to the station as the sole occupant/operator of a tanker, he attempted to cross a railroad crossing and was struck on the passenger side by a train, ejecting him from the apparatus. Firefighter Dake was airlifted to the University of Louisville Hospital where he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter.
03/01/02	Shane Murray, 21	Volunteer	Jefferson City, TN Murray died from injuries received while working a house fire. Circumstances related to the fatality and to several other firefighter injuries incurred at the scene of this incident are pending further investigation.
02/13/02	Robert Nichols	Volunteer	Cullman, Al While working traffic control and other support duties at the scene of a water-main break, F/F Nichols collapsed and died from an apparent heart attack.
02/18/02	Ray Ebel, 62	Volunteer	Newaygo, MI Chief Ebel collapsed at the scene of a house fire from an apparent heart attack and died at the hospital a short time later.
02/11/02	Vincent Davis, 42	Career	Dallas, TX F/F Davis died from injuries sustained at the scene of an unoccupied apartment building fire when a wall of the building collapsed on him and another firefighter.
02/10/02	Rex Walter, 69	Volunteer	Napanoch, NY Walter had arrived at the station in response to a chimney fire alarm and while putting on his turnout gear collapsed and died from an apparent heart attack.
02/08/02	Steven Olander, 39	Career	Detroit, MI F/F Olander died of complications (aneurysm) stemming from traumatic injuries sustained while working on the fireground of multi-story apartment building fire.
02/03/02	Lewis Rickards, 55	Volunteer	Lewes, DE Killed in a motor vehicle accident while enroute to an executive committee meeting of the Delmarva Volunteer Fireman's Association.
01/31/02	Thomas Brooks, 48	Career	Lumberton, NC F/F Brooks had participated in a strenuous physical training activity and 3 calls during his shift. When the shift woke up the next morning, Firefighter Brooks was found lifeless.
01/21/02	Dustin Schwendeman, 26	Volunteer	Belpre, OH F/F Schwendeman was injured and later died when, while responding in his private vehicle to a mutual aid call (house fire), the vehicle left the roadway and overturned several times.
01/21/02	Thomas Andersen, 48	Career	Chief Andersen collapsed and died of a cardiac arrest while fighting a two-story condominium fire.
01/16/02	Robert Feeney, 42	Volunteer	F/F Feeney collapsed and died from a cause still to be determined while connecting a five-inch supply line at a house fire.
September 11, 2001 Manhattan Box 8087
Line of duty deaths in the year for prior years
2001 442 2000 102 1999 112 1997 94 1996 95 1995 96 1994 104 1993 77 1992 75 1991 109 1990 108 1989 119 1988 136 1987 131 1986 121 1985 126 1984 119 1983 113 1982 125 1981 135 1980 140 1979 126 1978 171 1977 157

September 11, 2001
Manhattan Box 8087

In Memory Of 3 Brother Fire Fighters
Killed In The Line Of Duty
New York City, NY
06/17/2001

Harry Ford Rescue 4, Queens
Brian Fahey Rescue 4, Queens
John Downing Ladder 163, Queens

In Memory Of 3 Brother Fire Fighters
Killed In The Line Of Duty
Keokuk, Iowa
12/23/99

Police tape and flowers hang from a street sign at the scene of
Wednesday's fatal blaze that took the lives of three young children
and three firefighters, Thursday, Dec. 23, 1999 in Keokuk, Iowa.
Investigators are expecting to have any answers to the cause of
the blaze until next week. (AP Photo)

In Memory Of 6 Brother Fire Fighters
Killed In The Line Of Duty
Worcester, Massachusetts
12/03/99

Engine 7

PRESIDENT ALFRED K. WHITEHEAD

EULOGY AT WORCESTER FIRE FIGHTER'S MEMORIAL SERVICE

There are givers and there are takers in this world and fire fighters are truly givers. They give of themselves, on the job and off, and sometimes they give their lives to protect the lives and property of others.

That is what happened here in Worcester last Friday night when six of our fire fighters joined the ranks of the IAFF's bravest of the brave.

It is unfortunate, but in ours, the most dangerous profession, the specter of death is something fire fighters must face. From the time they leave the academy, every fire fighter understands that the next alarm may be their last. They understand the risks they face on every fire, large or small, and that death or serious injury… may be around the next corner. This is one of the tragic truths of our job and all of us acknowledge that when we choose to become fire fighters.

Every fire fighter is an individual and in many ways we're all very different. But when it comes to our profession, we're all very much the same…

In an era when heroes are hard to find, few would dispute that fire fighters are America's heroes. At a time when bravery is in short supply, fire fighters demonstrate the essence of bravery. Although some suggest that the notion of duty has been forgotten, fire fighters epitomize what duty really means. And in a society where sacrifice is seldom practiced, fire fighters are too often called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Rarely do fire fighters talk about the dangers that are an ever-present part of their job. They don't talk about the suffering they see and the pain they feel in the course of their normal workday. If you are not one of us, you don't know this. But this is who we are. This is what we do. Every fire fighter and paramedic in this arena and every IAFF member across the U.S. and Canada understand what I am saying. Fire fighters know they can count on each other whether they are the best of friends or they have never met.

This is a bond that every fire fighter shares. It is a bond that knows no geographic boundaries. And it is that very bond, that strong kinship, that guarantees, without question, that fire fighters will do whatever is necessary to try and rescue their brother or sister fire fighters from treacherous infernos like that horrific fire last Friday.

Here in Worcester four of our six fallen heroes remain entombed in that smoldering warehouse. It is a tragedy of epic proportions. But as fire fighter Frank Raffa, the President of the Worcester Fire Fighters Local 1009, made clear in his remarks: the Worcester Fire Fighters will not give up and they will not rest until they deliver these fallen heroes to their families.

Even as we honor these heroes here today, the recovery efforts continue at the warehouse site. There is not a fire fighter or paramedic in this hall today who would question that decision because such determination is also a part of who we are.

As with all fire fighters, these six fire fighters were ready and willing to lay their lives on the line to protect the citizens of Worcester and in this case, that’s exactly what happened.

I can assure you that our fire fighters here in Worcester will continue to perform their sworn duties and put the lives of your citizens ahead of their own. They would have it no other way because there is no other way.

When these fallen fire fighters are recovered from that warehouse and laid to rest life will return to normal for most citizens of Worcester. But for the loved ones.... and the many friends these fire fighters left behind life will never be the same.

Nothing can erase the grief and sorrow you feel over your loss, but I hope and pray you can take comfort in knowing that there was abundant meaning in their lives. Take heart in knowing that they were engaged in an endeavor that is a measure of human greatness and that they will always be remembered for their, courage, honor, and selfless dedication Always remember that they made a difference in this world because they died doing something that mattered.

I extend my deepest sympathies to each of the families and offer you sincere condolences from the 232,000 members of the International Association of Fire Fighters. I promise you that we will keep their memory alive in our hearts and our minds. Their names will be enshrined on the marble wall of honor at the IAFF Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial in Colorado Springs so that all fire fighters…. present and future will never forget the sacrifices they made.

I know that every fire fighter across the world is praying for completion of the recovery activities so that each of the families can seek closure. And I know that each of these men has earned a special place in heaven.

May they rest in peace.


Ladder 2	Engine 3	Rescue 1
Lt. Thomas E. Spencer, 42 A fire department lieutenant and a Worcester native, he attended Catholic schools for 12 years, graduating from St. Peter's High School. He was married for 20 years and had three teen-agers, two boys and a girl. He was active in his sons' Boy Scout troop.	F/F James F. Lyons, 34 Graduated first in his fire academy class in 1987. A F/F for 12 years, he had recently taken the test to become a lieutenant and had scored well, according to his father, James Lyons Jr., a retired city teacher. He was single.	F/F Paul A. Brotherton, 41 Spent more than 16 years with the department. A Worcester native, he graduated from Burncoat High School and served four years in the Air Force. He worked as a Worcester City Hospital orderly, where he met his wife, a nurse, before joining the fire department. The couple had six sons, ages six to 16.
F/F Timothy P. Jackson, 51 Hopedale resident and father of two children. A 27-year veteran of the Worcester fire department, he was remembered as a man who loved to ride his Harley.	F/F Joseph T. McGuirk, 38 A resident of the Rochdale section of Leicester, he was a third generation F/F. The extended McGuirk family has more than 200 years of firefighting service. McGuirk, a father of two, was a carpenter until he became a F/F three years ago.	F/F Jeremiah M. Lucey, 38 A resident of the Cherry Valley section of Leicester, had been a F/F for about 10 years. He and his wife Michelle had two sons, John Patrick, 8, and Jeremiah M. Lucey, 11. A Worcester native, Lucey spent a month each summer camping with his family near Narragansett Beach in Rhode Island. He hoped to own a house there one day. Lucey wasn't scheduled to work on Friday, but was filling in for a colleague who needed the day off.
	Local 1009


We Shall Not Forget