By Mara H. Gottfried
The Pioneer Press
ST.PAUL, Minn. — A St. Paul firefighter who died in the line of duty a year ago is being remembered this weekend at a national fallen firefighters memorial.
Shane Michael Clifton, 38, had a heart attack and collapsed at his fire station at Snelling and Laurel avenues on Aug. 31, 2015. Fellow firefighters and paramedics tried to save him, but he died at Regions Hospital.
Now, some 30 St. Paul firefighters and Clifton relatives are in Colorado Springs, Colo., for an annual service Saturday at the International Association of Fire Fighters Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial Wall of Honor. Clifton’s name and 122 others were added this year.
“This last year has been really hard — Shane’s family has struggled and mourned,” said Dennis Hall, secretary of the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 21, the union representing rank-and-file St. Paul firefighters. “It’s a really important thing for the family and firefighters to be here and to see Shane’s name etched on the wall.”
Clifton was a St. Paul firefighter for eight years and left behind two daughters, now 2 and 9 years old.
He will also be memorialized at the Minnesota Fallen Firefighter Memorial at the Minnesota State Capitol grounds on Sept. 25 and the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial in Emmitsburg, Md., in October. A memorial headstone and plaque for Clifton were installed recently at St. Paul’s Station 14, where he spent most of his career.
Copyright 2016 the Pioneer Press