Age: 25
Additional Info: Browne had been volunteering for 2 1/2 years and had just finished taking a three-hour medical class twice a week for eight months.
Cause of Death: Browne and his parents, who were found in a wooded area 250 feet away from their home, were killed during when a tornado hit their mobile home. Browne’s three-year-old daughter suffered severe injuries but survived.
Date of Incident: November 16, 2006
From WWAY Channel 3
RIEGELWOOD, N.C. - As some firefighters searched through the rubble looking for survivors they discovered one of their own had not survived. The flags at the Acme-Delco-Riegelwood Fire Department are flying at half staff.
It was as Acme-Delco-Riegelwood firefighters scoured the area, looking for signs of life, pulling survivors from the debris, they learned fellow firefighter Mike Browne had been killed by the tornado along Holly Tree road. They pushed forward. They had to.
Acme-Delco-Riegelwood VFD Chief Steve Camlin said, “It’s hard. You have to get yourself and grip it. And it’s overwhelming. It can be. But we still got our job to do regardless. We couldn’t do anything for him, so we had to concentrate on his daughter.”
Full Story: N.C. firefighter killed by tornado