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Marion honors five firefighters for December structure fire rescue; three nominated for state honor
Summary
The council recognized five Marion firefighters who entered a Dec. 30 structure fire, located and removed a trapped 90-year-old man; the victim was flown for treatment and later died. Chief Barnett praised the crew’s training and said three were nominated for a state-level award.
The Marion City Council recognized five firefighters for their actions during a Dec. 30 early-morning structure fire in which crews entered the building, conducted a primary search and removed a 90-year-old man from a hallway.
Chief Barnett described the response: units were dispatched at about 2:45 a.m. to the 1100 block of East Boyden Street for a structure fire with a reported entrapment. Captain Chad Schmidt, firefighter Aaron Pritchett and firefighter Ben Schultz made an interior entry and located the man near the end of a hallway, Chief Barnett said. Firefighters carried the victim to the front yard, rendered medical aid until ambulance crews assumed patient care, and the victim was flown to a regional hospital for further treatment. The chief later said the victim died from injuries sustained in the fire.
"They made that entry and did exactly what they were supposed to do," Chief Barnett said, praising the crew’s training and discipline. He credited quick, systematic search procedures for locating the occupant and giving the family additional time with the victim.
Chief Barnett singled out Captain Chad Schmidt, Aaron Pritchett and Ben Schultz for the interior attack and said the department submitted nominations to the state for a formal recognition of their actions. He also thanked mutual-aid partners from Heron and noted the department’s automatic-aid agreement brings an extra engine company to Marion responses.
The council paused briefly to allow photographs and for firefighters to join families before returning to other business.
Next steps: the chief said the department expects to hear back from the state on the nominations within about a month.
Names mentioned: Captain Chad Schmidt; Aaron Pritchett; Ben Schultz; Josh Haynes; Hunter Hock.
