Part of OH Interstate Renamed for Cleveland Firefighter Killed on Roadway

CLEVELAND, Ohio – A portion of Interstate 90 in Cleveland is now named after Johnny Tetrick, a Cleveland firefighter who died in the line of duty.

The move became official Friday after Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed House Bill 107 at Cleveland Fire Station 22, where Tetrick worked for 25 years. DeWine was joined by Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb, members of Cleveland City Council, Association of Cleveland Firefighters President Jake Konys and Ohio Rep. Tom Patton (R-Strongsville), who is the bill’s primary sponsor.

“Our first responders every single day risk their lives, whether the police officers, whether the fire department,” DeWine said. “They’re out, and they take a risk every time they go out on the highway. ... So, I think today is an opportunity for us to say thank you, to honor Johnny, to honor his family.”

House Bill 107 passed unanimously in both chambers of the Statehouse. It designates I-90 between East 77th and East 105th streets as the Cleveland Firefighter Johnny Tetrick Memorial Highway

During the ceremony, Konys read quotes from firefighters who worked with Tetrick. His colleagues described him as a “go-to-guy” with a strong work ethic, a devoted father and a mentor to younger firefighters.

On Nov. 19, 2022, Tetrick, 51, of Kirtland, was part of a group of first responders called to a car accident on I-90 near the exit to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. A car had flipped over in the left lane, cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer reported previously.

Police cars closed off lanes to divert traffic while officials cleared the scene. Tetrick was picking up debris when a car drove through the closed lanes and struck him while going nearly 50 miles per hour. The driver then fled the scene.

The man who struck Tetrick, Leander Bissell, was convicted of murder in 2023 and was sentenced to life in prison with the chance to get parole after 16 years behind bars.

After the incident, the famously tight-knit firefighter community rallied around the Tetrick family, said Regan Tetrick, 22. Regan, the middle of Johnny’s three daughters, said she has received literally thousands of text messages of support from the firefighter community expressing support.

“I’m closer with some of the firemen and their families than I am with some of my own blood, and that is really saying something for me,” Regan Tetrick told reporters after the bill’s signing. “From the time I was born to right now, every holiday, every family event, I was always with the firemen. It really is a fire family.”

Regan’s sisters were not there physically. Johnny Tetrick’s youngest daughter, Eden, was taking final exams and his oldest, Falon, was in labor with a daughter of her own.

Asked about the timing of the bill signing likely being on the same day as her first niece being born, Regan Tetrick said, “I think everything always happens for a reason, and God’s timing is always perfect.”

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