Firefighter swept up by current
United States Fire Administration
The U.S. Fire Administration has announced the official on-duty death of Firefighter/First Responder Brian Stephen Smith, 56, of the St. George Island Volunteer Fire Department on August 25, 2020.
On Tuesday, August 25, 2020, Firefighter/First Responder Brian Stephen Smith and other fire department personnel, responded to a call of a water rescue on the beach. Firefighter/First Responder Smith went into the water to rescue a man and a juvenile and got swept up by the current. He was rescued from the water and immediately taken to the Weems Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced deceased.
Tribute is being paid to Firefighter/First Responder Smith at http://apps.usfa.fema.gov/firefighter-fatalities/
To date, 55 firefighter fatalities have been reported to USFA in 2020. Year-to-date and annual USFA firefighter fatality reports are posted online at https://www.usfa.fema.gov/data/statistics/ff_fatality_reports.html
Fatality status is provisional and may change as USFA contacts State Fire Marshals to verify fatality incident information.
