Colo. Firefighter Dies During Search for Hiker

July 10--The Boulder County Coroner's Office has identified the volunteer firefighter who collapsed and died following a hiker rescue Wednesday at the Brainard Lake Recreational Area as Richard Marchman, 66, of Lyons.

Marchman, a volunteer firefighter for the Indian Peaks Fire Protection District and the Allenspark Fire Department, collapsed after assisting in the midday rescue of a hiker with a broken ankle about 2.5 miles up the trailhead from Blue Lake.

"He was a full-time resident of the area and responded on a lot of calls," Sheriff Joe Pelle wrote in an email. "He was well-known and well-liked by the fire, EMS and law enforcement community in the mountains. And he was a real character."

Pete Lawrence, police marshal for the town of Ward and a longtime friend of Marchman, said he was "a good friend and an outstanding member of our fire department."

"Every time he responded, he did a real professional job," Lawrence added.

Members of Indian Peaks Fire declined to comment Thursday, and Allenspark Fire could not be reached.

In a statement released Thursday, the Boulder County Sheriff's Office said the injured hiker, Katherine Powell, was carried to a remote landing zone and airlifted to Exempla Good Samaritan Medical Center in Lafayette. In the wake of participating in Powell's rescue, Marchman collapsed about one mile up from the Blue Lake/Mitchell Lake Trailhead parking lot.

"There were EMTs and firefighters still in the immediate area, so response and emergency treatment measures were very quick and thorough," Pelle said. "But there was nothing that could be done for him."

Marchman was eventually pronounced dead by a paramedic on the scene. The cause and manner of his death continue to be investigated by the Coroner's Office.

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