Fire Chief Makes Supreme Sacrifice Volunteering To Help Others

senitor Thomas, Feb 09, 2005

Mr. COATS. Mr. President, the city of Vincennes mourns one of its local heroes, a man who made his mark as a volunteer and then died while volunteering to help others who were in serious trouble.
Recently, Lester Stewart, former fire chief of the Vincennes Volunteer Fire Department, died after he had stopped to help the victims of a three-vehicle wreck that sent eight people to the hospital. Stewart collapsed at the scene of the accident on Indiana Route 67 south of Bruceville after coming upon the two cars and a tractor-trailer which were involved in the wreck.

According to press accounts, the first car had hydroplaned on wet pavement and crossed the center line. The car then struck the rear wheels of the tractor-trailer. The driver of the second car swerved in order to avoid the accident occurring ahead. Upon collision both cars left the road, landing in deep ditches. Eight of the nine persons involved were injured and had to be sent by ambulance to the Good Samaritan Hospital in Vincennes. Six were later treated and released; the truck driver was the only person not taken to the hospital.

Chief Stewart was driving with his wife Esther on Indiana 67 between Vincennes and Bruceville when he spotted the accident. He stopped his car, got out to offer assistance, and saw a baby trapped in one of the cars. According to Esther Stewart, her husband climbed a twelve-foot bank in order to reach the vehicle, pulled a 10-month-old infant from the wrecked car, and handed the child to a firefighter who had driven to the scene. After rescuing the baby Stewart suddenly collapsed onto the tailboard of a fire truck. He was rushed to the Vincennes hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The coroner later ruled that death was caused by a heart attack. The child, Nicole Hagemeier, who was a passenger in a vehicle driven by her mother which had crashed when she tried to avoid the accident, was not seriously injured.

Concerning the tragic death of former Fire Chief Stewart, Assistant Fire Chief Richard Teising was quoted as saying: `He died doing what he had been doing for years, volunteering to help other people.'

The citizens of Vincennes are mourning the untimely death at age 55 of one of its finest citizens. The infant and her mother are especially grateful for the courage of this former volunteer fire chief who just happened to be passing by that fateful evening. Fire Chief Lester Stewart's presence of mind, prompt action, and characteristically unselfish deed made a heroic difference that night of March 30, 1990.

Our heart-felt condolences go out to Esther Stewart and the Stewart family. And our gratitude goes to the brave volunteers of the Vincennes Fire Department and to volunteers everywhere who, like this Hoosier hero, put themselves on the line for the safety of others each and every day.