Charleston 9 to be honored on 11th anniversary of fatal fire
The Charleston Fire Department will hold a commemoration ceremony to honor the nine firefighters who died while battling a blaze at the Sofa Super Store in 2007
By FireRescue1 Staff
CHARLESTON, S.C. — The nine firefighters who died 11 years ago in the line of duty will be honored on the anniversary of their deaths.
News 2 reported that the Charleston Fire Department will hold a commemoration ceremony at 7 p.m. Monday to honor Brandon Thompson, Brad Baity, Louis Mulkey, Mark Kelsey, Mike Benke, William Hutchinson, Melvin Champaign, Michael French and Earl Drayton, who were all killed while battling a blaze at the Sofa Super Store on June 18, 2007.
The public event will be held at the Charleston 9 Memorial Park, which was built at the site of the tragic fire. Firefighters will be on watch at the park all day.
The park features nine markers that represent the location of each of the fallen firefighters.
The 24 hour watch at the Charleston 9 Memorial is well underway. Take time today to think about the sacrifice made by our nine fallen brothers on that fateful day, 11 years ago. The memorial ceremony will commence this evening at 7 pm. #Charleston #CharlestonFirefighters pic.twitter.com/mG0La5M6ey
— Charleston Firefighters Association - Local 61 (@CFALocal61) June 18, 2018
Anniversary of ‘Charleston 9’ & tragic Sofa Super Store Fire ..... Montgomery County (Md) Fire & Rescue Remembers the 'Charleston 9' & the work in the aftermath of Chief Tom Carr (retired, MCFRS) & Chief John Tippett (retired, MCFRS) pic.twitter.com/9rhWCwgd1J
— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) June 18, 2018
