 |
|
|
Arkansas Firefighter Dies From Gas Explosion Injuries
Updated: Tuesday, August 17, 1999 - 5 p.m.
By MELISSA BARBAGALLO
Firefighter Robert Wade Meshell, 30, of the Huttig Fire Department in Arkansas died Monday afternoon a week after suffering severe burns from a gas explosion. He was taken off life support at the Shreveport Burn Center in Louisiana.
On August 9, Meshell was part of a crew from the Huttig department that was backing up a pumper from the Strong Fire Department at the scene of a motor home fire. Meshell was advancing a hoseline toward a burning vehicle when the gas tank exploded. The driver of the Huttig pumper and a third crew member suffered less serious burns.
The Meshell family has very limited funds, reports indicated. A fund has been set up in Meshell's name at Simmons National Bank branches in Huttig or El Dorado, Arkansas.
Funeral arragements are pending. Meshell was reportedly single.
Huttig is a small town on the central Arkansas border with Louisiana, about 120 miles
northeast of Shreveport.
|
Title Photo Credit: USFA