NC volunteer firefighter killed during Helene-related rescue operation
NC volunteer firefighter killed during Helene-related rescue operation
The Fairview firefighter was killed by a second landslide while rescuing a neighbor.
FAIRVIEW, N.C. — A volunteer fire department near Asheville says one of its own members died while conducting a rescue operation in the wake of Helene last week.
On Tuesday, the Fairview VFD shared initial details in a Facebook post. The department said the firefighter was killed in the line of duty Friday, Sept. 27, while conducting rescue operations.
The firefighter was later identified as Tony Garrison, who served the Fairview Fire Department and Garren Creek Fire.
Garrison was killed by a second landslide while rescuing a neighbor, the Charlotte Fire Department said in a social media post honoring him as a hero.
“Our hearts go out to his family, friends, and fellow firefighters during this devastating time. We also extend our deepest sympathies to all those who have lost loved ones during this storm. Every life lost is a tragedy, and we stand in solidarity with the communities affected by this disaster,” the department said.
Fairview is located about 11 miles southeast of Asheville, within Buncombe County.
Towns surrounding the Asheville area were among those hardest hit by the storm, which tore through Florida and Georgia before hitting the Carolinas. Officials estimate about 150 people in the American southeast died because of the storm.
The devastating flooding caused by Helene also caused two North Carolina deputies’ deaths. Both were from Macon and Madison counties, also near Asheville.
Macon County officials said Jim Lau, a courthouse security officer and deputy with the department, was in a truck before it went underwater on Friday around 11:30 a.m. Lau’s body was found on Saturday in a river near Fulton Road in Macon County.
The Madison County Sheriff’s Office has not commented on their deputy’s death.