Firefighter Fatalities

The U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) has received notice of the following firefighter fatalities:

Name: Paul K. Mikeal

Rank: Lieutenant Colonel/Evaluator Pilot

Age: 42

Gender: Male

Status: Career

Years of Service: 20

Name: Joseph M. McCormick

Rank: Major/Instructor Pilot

Age: 36

Gender: Male

Status: Career

Years of Service: Pending

Name: Ryan S. David

Rank: Major/Navigator

Age: 35

Gender: Male

Status: Career

Years of Service: Pending

Name: Robert S. Cannon

Rank: Senior Master Sergeant/Flight Engineer

Age: 50

Gender: Male

Status: Career

Years of Service: 29

Date of Incident: 07/01/2012

Time of Incident: 1830hrs

Date of Death: 07/01/2012

Fire Department: 145th Airlift Wing

Address: 4930 Minuteman Way, Charlotte, NC 28208

Fire Department Chief: BG Tony McMillan

Incident Description: Four members of the North Carolina Air National Guard, members of 145th Airlift Wing, were killed and two seriously injured while working a fire attack mission in South Dakota on the White Draw fire near Edgemont. The firefighting crew of the Air Force C-130H3, carrying a U.S. Forest Service Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS), had been battling wildfires in the days leading up to the crash, including those around Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Incident Location: White Draw fire (near Edgemont, SD - USNG: 13T EJ 99 04)

Funeral Arrangements: Pending

Tribute is being paid to Lieutenant Colonel Paul K. Mikeal, Major Joseph M. McCormick, Major Ryan S. David, and Senior Master Sergeant Robert S. Cannon at http://www.usfa.fema.gov/fireservice/fatalities/

To date, 46 firefighter fatalities have been reported to USFA in 2012. Year-to-date monthly and annual USFA firefighter fatality reports are posted online @ http://www.usfa.fema.gov/fireservice/fatalities/statistics/ff_stats.shtm