NORTHAMPTON BOROUGH, Pa. — Northampton Captain Michael Booke suffered a cardiovascular event shortly after completing a 200-yard swim during a water rescue training course, the United States Fire Administration reported.
Fellow first responders immediately began life-saving measures and transported him to a local hospital on Oct. 25. He remained hospitalized under medical care until he died on Nov. 12.
WFMZ reported Booke joined the department in 1998 and served in a variety of roles over his career, ultimately rising to the rank of captain.
Booke had also served as a Pennsylvania State Police trooper and later as the Fire Marshal for Troop M, retiring from the agency in 2017.
Trending
Chelmsford firefighter Nick Spinale suffered life-threatening injuries in a 40-foot training fall but is showing early signs of improvement
In Terre Haute, where call volume is rising and about 20% are non-urgent, the Crosswalk to Care program connects low-acuity callers to nurse-guided care, easing strain on EMS
Experts warn that the agency’s plan to close most of its research facilities could disrupt critical wildfire and climate data, undermine firefighting efforts and deepen a broader erosion of federal science capacity
An internal report into a 2023 blaze that killed two firefighters found equipment failures, extreme heat and a lack of modern tactics
