Editor’s Note: The fallen firefighter has been identified as Chris Brown, 39, a married man with two sons. The autopsy revealed he died of multiple blunt force trauma to his head, chest and pelvis after being struck by the semi truck.
March 06--HUDSON -- A 39-year-old volunteer firefighter for the Hudson Community Fire Protection District and career firefighter for the City of Bloomington was killed following a multi-vehicle accident near Hudson Tuesday night.
The man's name will be released following an autopsy scheduled for this morning, said McLean County Coroner Beth Kimmerling.
"Today we lost a member of our Hudson family," said Hudson Fire Chief Dan Hite. "We share in the sorrow felt by his loved ones, and we must not forget the valuable contributions he made to this community and the impact he has left on the Hudson Fire Department. The Hudson Fire Department is a close-knit family and the loss of one of our own affects us all. A tragedy of this type is felt by each and every member, but together, we can make it through. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family."
Flags were at half-mast at both the Hudson and Bloomington Fire Departments.
"We are deeply saddened by the painful loss of one of our own, and we will do our best to support his immediate family as well as his firefighter families in both Bloomington and Hudson," said Bloomington Fire Chief Mike Kimmerling. "Thank you for all the support we have received so far and will continue to need in order to move forward."
Beth Kimmerling said at approximately 9:45 p.m., McLean County officials were advised of a multiple-vehicle accident on southbound Interstate 39 near mile marker 6 in Hudson. Both fire and police units were dispatched, including the Hudson Fire Department and Illinois State Police.
At approximately 10:45 p.m., a southbound semi-trailer carrying a load of automobiles lost control and struck three first responder vehicles belonging to the Hudson Community Fire Protection District and the Illinois State Police. Six members of the Hudson Fire Department were injured and transported to Advocate BroMenn Regional Medical Center in Normal. At 11:38 p.m., the firefighter was pronounced dead by emergency department staff.
This story will be updated.
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