Over 200 people watched on Sunday as the Belleville Fire and Emergency Services Department unveiled its Firefighter Memorial Rose Garden.
Sunday, of course, was the 21st anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks in the U.S. that killed over 3,000 people including 343 New York City firefighters.
Belleville Fire Chief Monique Belair says the gardens and future monument will honour 13 Belleville firefighters who’ve lost their lives in the line of duty.
“To the surviving family members of all of our fallen, as your Fire Chief and on behalf of your current and retired members of the Belleville Fire and Emergency Service today, we remember your loss, we share your sorrow, and we honour those family members whom you’ve loved and lost.”
Belleville Fire Chief Monique Belair speaks at Firefighters Memorial Rose Garden unveiling Sunday September 11 2022. (Photo: Quinte News)
Below are the names of the 13 Belleville firefighters who’ve died as a result of their work.
Fire Chief William Brown (1929)
Captain Elmer Helm (1977)
Captain William Lake (1978)
Firefighter George Woodhouse (1986)
Firefighter Glen Emerson (1989)
Firefighter Rocque Davis (2000)
Captain Thomas Nobles (2002)
Captain Fred Ellis (2002)
Firefighter Robert Davenport ( 2015)
Fire Prevention Officer Will McDowell (2017)
Firefighter Robert Laing (2019)
Volunteer Deputy Elmer Middleton ( 1975)
Volunteer Firefighter Gerald Robertson (1985)
Belleville Fire Captain John Lake lost his father, Fire Captain William Lake, in 1978 after he suffered two serious heart attacks.
The first attack came immediately following rescue efforts by his father at a smoky house fire on Belleville’s Byron Street in 1978, a fire that took the lives of two small children. They died from smoke inhalation. Captain Lake was not wearing an air pack at the time as the department only owned four of them, two for each fire hall.
Speaking at the unveiling, Captain John Lake said he hoped the name of a 14th fallen Belleville firefighter would never have to be added to the Memorial Rose Garden.
“It’s comforting to know that these men will not be forgotten and I hope that the monument and garden serve as a reminder to all of our current and future firefighters to take every precaution to stay safe.”
Belleville Fire Captain John Lake. (Photo: Quinte News)
The engraved mural shows four major incidents involving the Belleville Fire and Emergency Services Department in the past, one of them a water rescue in the Moira River along Front Street and another a fire that destroyed the City Hotel. (Photo: Quinte News)
Mayor Mitch Panciuk and Fire Chief Monique Belair unveil a rendering of the monument now being created by local firm
Campbell Monument. (Photo: Quinte News)
Part of the Memorial as seen at night. (Photo: Quinte News)
Scene from the unveiling ceremony of the Belleville Firefighters Memorial Rose Garden and Monument September 11 2022. (Photo: Quinte News)
