Two Baltimore County firefighters were among 103 men and women honored Sunday in a national tribute to firefighters who died in the line of duty last year.
The 28th annual National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service, sponsored by the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation and the Department of Homeland Security, was held at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg.
Firefighters in 36 states were remembered, including Maryland's Jarrett A. Dixon and Brian D. Neville.
Dixon, 36, died in January shortly after department physical fitness training. He joined the Baltimore County Fire Department in 1997 as an emergency medical technician. He later served as a paramedic and in 2003 was promoted to fire apparatus driver-operator.
Neville, a 32-year-old firefighter and medic, died of a heart attack shortly after responding to an emergency last October. He joined the Baltimore County's department in 2001.
"The fire service is honored and humbled to memorialize these fallen heroes and show our sincere appreciation for the sacrifices made by those they left behind," Chief Dennis Compton, chairman of the foundation's board of directors, said in a statement.
The names of the 103 firefighters who died last year, as well as 19 others who died in previous years, were added to the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial at the academy, the foundation said. Altogether, the names of more than 3,300 firefighters appear on plaques surrounding the 28-year-old memorial.
Causes of death last year included burns, and vehicle accidents going to and from an emergency, training incidents and helicopter crashes. Fifteen deaths were the result of wildfires, controlled burns and wildland protection training. Oregon and North Carolina each lost nine firefighters last year, the highest number of casualties, the foundation reported.
