A group of firefighters based out of MI were involved in a fatal crash in Minnesota Saturday, and the firefighting crew was traveling to Utah to assist with the Box Canyon Fire.
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The driver of the truck involved in a crash that killed two firemen is being held in jail, pending formal charges against him.
A later update stated that all of the injured firefighters are expected to recover.
The Minnesota State Patrol says Sunday that 25-year-old Alan Swartz and 23-year-old James Shelifoe died in the crash on Interstate 35W on Saturday afternoon.
The Beartown firefighters are based in Baraga in the Upper Peninsula near Keweenaw Bay. The Minnesota State Patrol says the truck left the roadway for an unknown reason, hit the median cable barriers and rolled.
The Box Canyon fire started around 5 p.m. last Thursday in the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, located east of Salt Lake City. The crew specializes in fighting wildfires and are managed by the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
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Minnesota Professional Fire Fighters said Sunday on Facebook that “area firefighters are being sought to act as Honor Guard for the deceased and critically injured firefighters”. The statement says: “our hearts are broken”. The KBIC has already begun planning a fundraiser to benefit the families affected by this accident.
