Chelsea Firefighters

Ninety firefighters died while on duty in 2009

Last year, the number of firefighter killed while on duty was the lowest it has been in more than 15 years.

Ninety firefighters died while on duty in 2009, according to a newly released USFA report. It is the least amount of deaths reported by the agency since the total was 81 in 1993.

Thirteen of the 90 deaths were classified as Hometown Heroes. Firefighters who die of heart attacks or strokes within 24 hours of a response or training received the designation, which was adopted after legislation was signed in 2003.

An analysis of statistics on the USFA Web site shows the 2009 fatalities the third lowest since the agency started keeping records in 1977.

The number of on-duty deaths last year may change in the next few months as more information may be outstanding. Traditionally, state fire marshals across the country are asked to check records to make sure all incidents were reported.

During 2008, the USFA reported 118 firefighters lost their lives on duty.

Last year, heart attacks were blamed for 47.7 percent of deaths, while 31.1 percent died of traumatic injuries and strokes were cited in 8.8 percent.

The preliminary records showed 46 were volunteers and 36 were career firefighters. Eight wildland fire personnel also were killed. Twenty-eight percent of those killed were under 40.

Stress and over exertion and vehicle collisions were listed as the top causes of the fatal incidents last year.

April was the deadliest month -- 14 deaths -- followed by February and August with 10 each.

Pennsylvania lost eight personnel last year, while New York lost seven.

Station Chief Bob Thibert A longtime volunteer firefighter with the Chatham-Kent Fire Department and the chief of its Tilbury, Ont., fire station died suddenly December 3 of an apparent heart attack. Bob Thibert, 55, was co-ordinating emergency response to a fire in Charing Cross early Thursday morning when he collapsed at his dispatch desk at the fire hall. He died at 6 a.m. at the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, according to a press release.

Volunteer firefighter Bob Thibert, 'was masterful at the sene of an emergency,' says Chatham-Kent fire Chief Bob Crawford. (CBC) "He is going to be missed by everybody," said Chatham-Kent Mayor Randy Hope. "On behalf of Chatham-Kent council and the community, I extend our condolences to his wife and [three] children." "He's one of these people that's irreplaceable," Chatham-Kent fire Chief Bob Crawford told CBC News. "That combination of knowledge and ability and skill and commitment, that heart that he brought to the job every day. "He was masterful at the scene of an emergency."

Thibert was as well known for community work as he was for fighting fires. He was a noted contributor to Muscular Dystrophy Canada, among other organizations, and regularly played Santa Claus at Tilbury Christmas events. "Bob was well, well known in town," said Tilbury resident John Quenneville. "He took care of everybody and if you need something, Bob was there to help you." "Whether it was working as a firefighter or whether it was raising funds for the community, he really brought a lot," Crawford said. "My hope is that the people that worked with him, his crew, that they would carry on his tradition, to recognize the things he did in the community and perhaps emulate them. "That's really the legacy that Bob leaves us," he added.

Thibert's 21-year-old son was helping to fight the fire where Thibert had been co-ordinating the response before his death. The fire broke out at about 3 a.m. Thursday at a commercial and residential building about 13 kilometres southeast of Chatham.