In Memory of West, TX Firefighters Last Alarm 4/17/2013

On April 17, at approx 1930 hours, an explosion ripped through a fertilizer plant in West, Texas. Among the dead were 11 firefighters and EMTs from five departments who rushed in to help as the explosion leveled parts of the small town. I had the opportunity to visit West three days after the explosion, and witnessed the physical destruction and felt, first hand, the loss of the 11 firefighters/EMTs. On Monday, April 22, I stood as part of the Honor Guard for three of the fallen firefighters/EMTs. It was an experience I will never forget.

On Friday, May 17, West will mark the one month anniversary of this fateful event. I have spoken with several members of the West Fire Department recently, and they are still trying to pick up the pieces and move forward. It will be months, possibly even longer, before things return to the “new normal” in West. Families have lost their homes, cars, and, in the case of these 11 families, their fathers, sons and brothers.

Therefore, I would like to ask every fire department and EMS agency for assistance in helping the families of our fallen brothers as well as the departments they served at.

Starting at 0700 and ending at 1800 hours on Friday, May 17, I would like to hold a boot drive at every department, one hour for each fallen firefighter/EMT. At the end of the specified time, we will collect the boots in a central location. After the funds have been tallied and checks prepared, I will hand deliver the proceeds to the West Fire Department at the end of May/early June.

A press release will be sent on May 15 announcing the event, and we will try to schedule some media appearances on May 14-15 to promote the fund raiser. On May 17, I will direct the media to the drive locations identified on your forms so they can speak with your department members and community donors.

If you have any questions, or to submit the data requested above, please call me at 585-329-1806 or email me at Ahmed_Mustafa@WestWebsterFD.org.

Thank you in advance for helping with this very special fund raiser. I know that the funds will be of tremendous help to the families and departments.

Lt Syed Ahmed Mustafa
FF/Paramedic
Webster Fire Department, Webster, NY