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AN OPEN CALL TO OUR MEMBERSHIP REGARDING LAST ALARM
It is our goal at “Last Alarm” to remember each of our deceased brothers and sisters.
Columnists are limited to remembering only those we have knowledge of, which is
only a fraction of all members who have passed from us.
By Ben Van Wyk
If you have information regarding deceased members not yet recognized in Last
Alarm, please share with us. The more complete the information, the better we
can recognize the contributions of the departed members of our fire family.
To do so, contact any of the editors, or email me at the address below.
Thank you for your help!
-Dave | email: [email protected]
Chris Rutledge:
A Memorial &
Lessons Learned
Hello Fire Family, on Oct. 22, 1993
we lost a member of our fire family,
Christopher Charles Rutledge, in a line
of duty traffic accident. The accident
happened during a routine ambulance
transport and in a split second two
lives were lost.
It has been 21 years since his death. In
Chris’ honor, our family is asking everyone to
take a “safety stand-down” with their crews
to review safe driving policies. Driving our
personnel to and from emergencies—from
ambulance transports to grocery store
trips—places our fire family and the public at
risk. Resist complacency.
My brother is gone and we miss him. We
appreciate the thoughts and prayers that
come this time of year. In the years since his
death thousands of ambulances, squads
and fire engines have had near misses. We
hope no other members of this fire family
will feel the pain we experienced.
Practicing safe driving habits everyday could
be the greatest way to remember Chris. Your
brother and sister firefighters, as well as the
public, are relying on you to get them home
safely to their families. Let our loss help you
make this a priority and drive safe.
42 FIREWIRE | VOL.4
Photo Credit: Dan Piedlow
Sincerely,
Your Brother in Service FF/PM Mark
Rutledge and The Rutledge Family
At San Bernardino County Fire Station
8 in Lucerne Valley there is a modest
bronze plaque that reads:
“This monument has been built and dedicated
in fond memory of Christopher Charles Rutledge,
Who on this date of October 22, 1993 while in
dedicated service to the Lucerne Valley Fire
Department and his community fell in the line of
duty.”
After 21 years, the memory of Firefighter Rutledge
and the day he died has faded. Our new members
should know a little about Chris and how the story
of his death should impact our everyday at work.
Chris was 16 years old when he joined the
explorer post in Lucerne Valley. Four years later he
graduated high school, started respiratory therapy
school and joined the local paid-call company.
Right away, he was bitten by the fire service
“bug.” After completion of his respiratory therapy
program, Chris set about becoming a firefighter.
He went first From PCF to “full-time/part-time,”
which was the old title for what eventually became
the limited term (LT) position. He was assigned to
what was then Station 111 (now 8’s) driving the
ambulance. Eventually Chris was hired full-time in
1991 by the San Bernardino County Fire Agency
and assigned to Lucerne Valley. He proved to be a
dedicated and service-oriented firefighter.
On the morning of October 22, 1993 Company
111 was dispatched to a medical aid for a patient
complaining of difficulty breathing. Chris was the
paramedic assigned to medic ambulance that
day. The patient contact was nothing out of the
ordinary, with exception of the fact that the ]Y[