A Tennessee firefighter died in the line of duty on Friday, April 11 after he was stricken by an apparent heart attack at his fire station.
Firefighter/EMT Mark Haynes, 37, served the West Lauderdale County Fire Department for eight years. He was called in to the station for an EMS run Friday, but felt nauseated and did not go on the run, said Assistant Chief Ron Weir. His partner found him collapsed in the restroom and a department ambulance transported Haynes to Dyersbury Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at about 2 p.m.
Weir said Haynes lost his first wife to an asthma attack in 1995, but is survived by his second wife, his 13-year-old son, and his step-daughters. He worked for the local gas and water department, ran the sound system at the First Baptist Church, and was heavily involved in the community.
"He was very well thought of in the community," Weir said. "He was a great guy."
Weir said Haynes was the department's go-to guy who would help out with anything, and was always one of the first to go inside a structure during an interior fire attack, because he knew what he was doing and everyone trusted him. He said Haynes was also constantly working or involved in a community activity.
"This guy worked continuously. He was doing something all the time, he never was still," the assistant chief said.
The funeral took place Tuesday, April 15 at 2 p.m. at Garner Funeral Home in Ripley, TN. A memorial fund has been established in memory of Mark Haynes, c/o Assistant Chief Ron Weir, West Lauderdale County Fire Dept, 2870 Asbury-Glimp Rd., Ripley, TN 38063-4562.
The West Lauderdale County Fire Department has 18 members and serves a population of 5,000 to 7,000 in a rural area of 50 square miles. This is the first line of duty death in the department's history.
