As of Wednesday, the expanding brush fire had expanded across more than 100 acres in central Connecticut.
A Connecticut fireman died in the line of duty on Tuesday while responding to a spreading brush fire, according to officials. Robert Sharkevich Sr., a member of the Wethersfield Volunteer Fire Department, died Tuesday evening while responding to a major brush fire on Lamentation Mountain in Berlin, Connecticut.
Sharkevich, 66, died in a crash involving a utility task vehicle moving on a steep, rocky incline, according to a Meriden Police Department announcement. Three additional firefighters were hurt in the collision and taken to local hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries. The incident is currently being investigated.
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Sharkevich, a seasoned fireman, worked for the Hartford Fire Department in Connecticut before retiring and helping with the Wethersfield Volunteer Fire Department.
He also worked for the Town of Wethersfield as a carpenter and maintainer for the Wethersfield Public Schools District for the past four years, according to a Town of Wethersfield news release.
On Tuesday evening, members of local fire departments organised a march for Sharkevich, with staff in uniform and an American flag hanging in his honour. “Today, we remember a hero who selflessly answered the call of duty, who stood on the front lines when danger loomed,” the Berlin Volunteer Fire Department wrote on Facebook Wednesday morning.
“A firefighter is not just someone who battles flames; they are the ones who rush in when others rush out, driven by a deep sense of courage and purpose.”
On Wednesday morning, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont ordered that the national and state flags be lowered to half-staff in honour of Sharkevich. Flags will be lowered throughout the state until sundown on the day of Sharkevich’s burial.
“His selfless dedication to public service and the safety of his community and the surrounding towns is nothing less than heroic,” Lamont said of Sharkevich in a statement on Wednesday.
“On behalf of the people of Connecticut, I thank him for the service he has provided to our state, and I extend my deepest condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues in the Wethersfield Volunteer Fire Department and Hartford Fire Department.”
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