Fire Service Deaths 2006

He had completed a 24 hour shift with the Corpus Christi Fire Department at approximately 0730 hours on 1/03/2006. The shift included at least one response call. At 0839 hours a citizen found he was in a prone position on the street near his car, which was approximately 7.6 miles from his station. A Nueces County Medical Examiner investigator pronounced him dead at the scene. An autopsy was conducted and the preliminary cause of death had been determined as a cerebrovascular accident (stroke).

She had arrived at the scene of a series of weather related motor vehicle accidents on 1/07/2006. As she and another firefighter were making their way to assess patients, an out-of-control vehicle struck the median wall and a parked vehicle prior to striking her from behind. She was transported to the local medical center where she remained hospitalized until her death on 1/13/2006.

He began feeling discomfort and pain after responding to a mutual aid house fire in Waynesville, Illinois. He reported to the onsite medical team and was rushed to the hospital by ambulance. He passed away en route and was pronounced at the hospital.

Heresponded at approximately 1700 hours to a working commercial structure fire. Just before 2200 hours, he was operating under clean-up operations when a wall collapsed, trapping him and two other firefighters. One firefighter was removed from the debris alive, but he and another firefighter were pronounced dead at the scene.

While attending a fire company drill, he responded to a call for a smoke investigation at the end of North Railroad Avenue. Upon returning to the station, he complained of not feeling well and went home.  He slept until 3:00 p.m. the next day, got up, made the bed, and took the dog out, but while in the yard with the dog he collapsed. The Rio Grande Fire Company along with the Rescue Squad responded and performed CPR on him. He was transported to Burdette Tomlin Hospital where he later expired from a suspected heart attack.

He had responded to and worked a brush fire. Approximately one hour after returning home, he collapsed from an apparent heart attack. Attempts by emergency medical personnel to revive him were unsuccessful.

He died at home from a cause still to be determined. He had responded to three alarms within the preceding 24 hours.

He was operating at a working residential fire when he became disoriented and was overcome by conditions in an upstairs portion of a split-level house. Preliminary reports reveal that he died from smoke inhalation.

He was pulling a line into the structure when he succumbed to a heart attack. healso served as a Sheriff's Deputy in the Burke County Sheriff's
Department.

 He was participating in surf rescue training when the watercraft he was in capsized. He became caught in rough surf conditions, and once rescuers could reach him safely he was found to be unresponsive. Care was initiated in the water and then he was brought to shore. He was transported to a hospital where he remained until he succumbed to his injuries (drowning).

He passed away from injuries received when he was severely burned while operating apparatus on a wildland fire ground. He also served as a firefighter-paramedic with the City of Chickasha Fire Department.

He responded to an emergency call at a residence. He was attacked, and killed by two assailants while on the scene.

He died of cardiac arrest while on-duty in the firehouse.

During the firefighting activities, the truck he was driving became stuck and a tractor was obtained in an effort to get the truck loose. While in the process to free the truck a clevis attached to the tractor broke, and the tow rope recoiled through the truck's windshield striking him in the head. He was taken by ambulance to a Brookings South Dakota Hospital, and then airlifted to Sioux Valley Hospital in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. he passed away of the injuries he received on 4/11/2006.

He was attending a function with his volunteer fire department while serving as a driver/operator on one of the fire department's engines. While standing by with his apparatus,  he suffered an apparent heart attack and he never regained consciousness.

He fought a difficult and prolonged structure fire. The next day he only worked a half-tour. Shortly after, while relaxing at home, he suffered an acute heart attack.

While responding to a medical call, his vehicle veered off the road and hit a utility pole. He passed away as a result of his injuries.

He was operating a tanker to an appliance fire in a mobile home. After the incident was mitigated,  He was on his way to get the tanker refilled when it went off the roadway.  He was ejected when the tanker overturned, and he succumbed to his injuries at the scene.

He worked his second consecutive motor vehicle accident (MVA) when he collapsed just after mitigating the incident and preparing to clear the scene. Care was initiated and he was transported to the hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

He complained of not feeling well as he prepared to respond to a HazMat incident. Upon arrival at the scene, his condition worsened and he reported to EMS. It was decided he should be transported to the hospital for evaluation, and during transport to the hospital, he suffered cardiac arrest. Despite all resuscitative measures, he was pronounced dead at the hospital.

He collapsed while working at the scene of a multi-vehicle accident. He was rendered medical assistance while being rushed to Lockport Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead from acute coronary artery thrombosis.

He was critically injured while fighting a fire on the 2nd floor of a two story house on 5/14/2006. The fire started around 0430 hours with four people in the home at the time of the fire. Three of them got out safely and a 16-year-old was rescued by firefighters. It was following this rescue that he ran into trouble.

While responding to a fire alarm on April 22nd, hestruck a semi-truck as he drove to the fire station. He remained in the hospital until his death on May 21st.

In preparation for a pine under-story prescribed burn, he instructed one of the dozers to push down a dead snag. When the blade of the dozer engaged the large red oak, the base of the tree suddenly broke loose with the tree-top striking him while he was on the ground.

He was performing interior fire attack at a heavily involved residential structure fire when he exited the building and complained of not feeling well. Care was initiated on scene and he was transported to the local care facility. It was there that it was determined that he was suffering a major heart attack and he was transferred to a cardiac care facility. He remained hospitalized until he passed away.

He died from injuries received when the apparatus he was operating drifted onto the shoulder of the road, and with a steering wheel overcorrection caused the vehicle to roll. It was reported that he was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected from the truck.

He had responded to a call earlier in the day. He apparently suffered a heart attack in the evening and passed away.

The fire department's dive team responded to a report of two juveniles caught in the high waters of the Wellington Reservoir. A boat was dispatched to the scene to rescue the juveniles, but became stuck in the trees. He entered the water in order to reach the juveniles, but was overcome by the current. He was pulled from the water, and the other firefighters attempted to revive him. He was taken to an area hospital where he passed away.

He fell through a weakened first floor while fighting a residential fire.

He responded to a river rescue incident the afternoon of July 4th, 2006. He collapsed while at work the following morning, and passed away a short time later from a heart related cause.

While responding to a vehicle accident call and en route to the station, Firefighter Woodbridge died from injuries received in a privately owned vehicle she was operating when it struck a utility pole.

He responded with his department to a working residential fire at 1917 hours. Irwin complained of feeling ill while on the fire ground, and was treated for heat exhaustion along with two other firefighters due to the severe weather conditions (heat). The department cleared the fire at 2100 hours, and firefighters were released and returned to their homes. Department personnel followed-up by calling Irwin at his residence several times to make sure he was feeling better. He indicated that he had taken a shower and was in fact feeling better, but a short time later (2227 hours) he was found at his residence and had passed away from a heart attack.

He when suddenly their helicopter crashed into the Klamath River after a long day battling wildfires at the Titus Fire portion of the Happy Camp Complex. The pilots were on a contract for the U. S. Forest Service (USFS), and employed by the Heavy Lift Helicopters Inc. of Apple Valley. The cause of the crash is still to be determined.

Two pilots died when suddenly their helicopter crashed into the Klamath River after a long day battling wildfires at the Titus Fire portion of the Happy Camp Complex. The pilots were on a contract for the U. S. Forest Service (USFS), and employed by the Heavy Lift Helicopters Inc. of Apple Valley. The cause of the crash is still to be determined.

He suffered a heart attack and fell from the bed of a pickup truck he was riding in while responding to a confirmed structure fire.

He suffered an apparent heart attack this morning, while on duty and performing a fitness training activity. Fire department personnel at Station 16 began immediate care him, he was then transported to UMC Hospital where he passed away a short time later.

He died while working at the scene of a commercial structure fire. He along with four other firefighters, who were all injured with one in critical condition, became trapped when the floor of the structure collapsed and they fell into the basement.

He passed away of injuries he suffered while working at the scene of a commercial structure fire. He along with four other firefighters, who were all injured, became trapped when the floor of the structure collapsed and they fell into the basement. Of the other four firefighters, one other lost his life on the scene.

He had difficulty breathing, and began having chest pains while preparing to respond to the scene of a reported non-fire emergency. He was treated in the firehouse by an EMT then transported to the hospital where he passed away from an apparent heart attack.

He passed away of injuries sustained while operating a tanker en route to a fire call in a neighboring community. The apparatus left the roadway and rolled; ejecting him. Preliminary reports indicate that no seat belt was being worn.

A pilot and firefighter died when their OV-10 aircraft crashed as they worked a wildland fire in remote Tulare County.  The cause of the incident is still under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.

A pilot and firefighter died when their OV-10 aircraft crashed as they worked a wildland fire in remote Tulare County.  The cause of the incident is still under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board.

He was searching for victims on the third floor of a three-story apartment building in Union City, New Jersey. A fire that had been burning in a ventilation shaft in the building suddenly broke through into the area where he was, trapping him behind a wall of flames. Firefighters manning a hose line on the third floor fought back the flames and reached him, bringing him to the street where they tried to resuscitate him. He was transported to St. Mary's Hospital in Hoboken, New Jersey where he was pronounced dead

He was performing an extraction demonstration for Franklin's Annual Patriots' Day Celebration when he stated to a fellow firefighter that he was not feeling well. He collapsed and was quickly attended to by emergency services personnel on the scene. He was transported to South Hampton Memorial Hospital.
After exhausting all efforts by the emergency room staff, Firefighter Memory passed away.

He was marking the locations of fire hydrants with spray paint on the road surface. After stopping at the location of one hydrant, setting vehicle hazard lights on, and exiting to the front of the vehicle to make a mark, the brush-truck apparatus was hit from behind by another vehicle and crashed forward on top of him.  He was pronounced at the scene of the incident.

He was responding to a water rescue incident in a personally owned vehicle (POV) operated by the Assistant Chief, who was also his step-father. As they traveled over a low-water crossing, their vehicle was swept away by the water current due to flash flooding. His step-father and another occupant of the vehicle were able to escape, and were subsequently rescued. He was unable to escape the vehicle, and he succumbed to his injuries at the scene.

He passed away from a cause still to be determined, but was a suspected heart attack, while operating fire department apparatus as he was returning to the department from lunch.  He had complained of feeling excessively tired to his co-workers at the department before leaving for lunch. He was discovered slumped over the wheel of the vehicle where it had come to a stop in the middle of the road.

One firefighter and two other firefighters were trapped in a residential (row house) structure fire when the second floor reportedly collapsed on top of them. A rapid intervention team was able to rescue the trapped firefighters and all were transported to the hospital. One firefighter passed away from injuries received, and was pronounced at the hospital.

He was attending the department's weekly work-detail in serving as the Co-Coordinator of the Crisis Response Team. While performing those duties, he complained of not feeling well and left to take a lunch break. Shortly after departing, he suffered a massive cerebral vascular accident (CVA), and passed away from his condition several days later.

He was one of five firefighters injured while attempting to protect a home close to where the Esperanza wildfire began in Southern California. The firefighters were overcome sometime between 0700-0900 hours by a very rapid fire progress that the crew had no time to retreat to their engine, or use their portable fire shelters. Four firefighters died from injuries the day of the arson-caused incident. He spent several days in the hospital in critical condition suffering from burns to over ninety-percent of his body. Late in the afternoon on 10/31/2006 he succumbed to his injuries and passed away.

He and a team of firefighters were working fire suppression inside of a burning residential structure when they were overcome by heavy smoke conditions, and ordered by command to exit the structure. While exiting the structure and as the team was coming down a staircase, they encountered rapid fire progress conditions, which separated him from the other firefighters. When a rescue team re-entered the farm house they discovered him on the second floor of the farm house where he had passed away, according to the coroner's report, as a result of smoke inhalation.

He passed away from an apparent heart attack while working at his desk at the firehouse.

He was responding on his POV (motorcycle) to the station for a call to a motor vehicle accident. He was unable to bring his vehicle to a stop at an intersection and lacking the right-of-way, struck another vehicle.  He was transported to the hospital, but passed away about two hours later from his received injuries. Excessive speed was reported to be a contributing factor in the accident.

He suffered a heart attack shortly after reporting to work and performing floor-watch duties.

He was working the interior of a single-family one-story residential structure fire when he and other crew members were ordered to evacuate the structure, because of extreme conditions. He reportedly became disoriented and trapped due to a rapid fire progress. Shortly afterwards,  he was rescued by others, but over 30% of his body had been severely burned.  Hereceived advanced live saving (ALS) treatment and was transported to the hospital, but passed away from his injuries in the Grady Memorial Hospital's Burn Unit six days later.

He collapsed at the fire station while exercising. Other firefighters immediately began resuscitation efforts and transported him to Carolinas Medical Center where he passed away from hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM).

He had been requested by the Department Chief to report to the station to pickup a piece of apparatus, and take it to the shop for maintenance. While enroute to the station, he began experiencing difficulty in breathing, severe chest pains, and had to pull off the road. Help was summoned and his department's ambulance transported him to the hospital where he succumbed to a fatal heart attack.

He was severely injured while performing fire attack duties with a hose line at a working commercial structure fire. An awning on the front of an appliance store in a strip mall collapsed on top of him and the Fire. Although fellow firefighters were able to rescue both from underneath the rubble, the firefighter, who was reported to have been trapped for thirty minutes, did not survive and was pronounced dead at the hospital. The Fire Chief was treated for injuries at the hospital and released.

He died in a motor vehicle accident (personally owned vehicle) while working on a community function sponsored by the fire department.