The investigation into what caused the Saturday morning house fire that cost two Wilmington firefighters their lives continues.
Wilmington Fire Chief Anthony Goode offered a bit more information on the deaths of two Wilmington firefighters in a house fire early Saturday morning.
Goode says the collapse of the home’s first floor into the basement level left Lt. Christopher Leach and Senior Firefighter Jerry Fickas trapped.
“Firefighter Fickas was joined by other members of Squad 4 and were attempting to rescue Lt. Leach at the time of the collapse, which also trapped him," Goode said.
The cause of the fire has yet to be determined, and hasn’t been linked to car fires in the area around the same time of the house fire.
An investigation is ongoing, with the help of officials from multiple organizations, led by the state Fire Marshal’s department.
“Yes we are in the progress of interviewing any witness and anyone that may have any information, involved," Goode said. "This is not one of those situations where we’re going to say, you know, don’t snitch – all of the stuff that you hear commonly with criminal investigations and stuff like that we’re not there.”
Two other firefighters remain in critical but stable condition at Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland, Pennsylvania.
President of Local 1590 of the Wilmington Firefighters Association Bruce Schweiger says the entire firefighter community is hurting right now, including himself.
He know both fallen firefighters personally, graduating from the academy with Jerry Fickas and was also good friends with Lt. Christopher Leach.
He says firefighting was in their blood.
“Firefighters are a rare breed I guess you could say. We push it away and deal with it later kind of deal," Schweiger said. "Some guys are beat up, some guys are tired. But being together- bringing families together – has helped a lot.”
Schweiger said he’s getting through their loss with the support of family and friends.
A joint memorial service will take place on Saturday, although further details about time and place have yet to be released.
It’s being arranged with the help of the International Association for Firefighters, Schweiger and others.
A GoFundMepage for the families of the fallen firefighters has been set up on Wilmingtonfirefighters.org.
Goode said anyone with information about the fire can call 302-576-3950.
