Two firefighters from a small community in West Virginia were killed Saturday evening and three others were injured when an apparatus flipped against a rock wall in Kanawha County during a response.
The U.S. Fire Administration on Monday morning announced the line-of-duty deaths of Pratt Assistant Fire Chief Michael Edwards, 46, and Lt. Tom Craigo, 40, who were en route to an accident scene with multiple fatalities when the incident occurred.
According to the USFA, Fire Chief Timothy Walker remains in critical condition, firefighter Billy Hypes is in stable condition, and firefighter Kyle Jenkins was released from the hospital with minor injuries.
Edwards was a 25-year veteran of the fire service, while Craigo had been a firefighter for 15 years.
"We are heartbroken at the loss of our volunteer firefighters and are praying and hopeful that others who were severely injured will recover quickly," West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said in a statement. "Our first responders risk their lives every day for us and when events like this happen it serves as a somber reminder of just how dangerous the public service they provide for us can be. It's a sad, sad day."
Pratt is a community of less than 1,000 people along the southern bank of the Kanawha River about 23 miles southeast of Charleston.
