Firefighter Honored as Line of Duty Victim

The final step in recognizing a fallen firefighter in the Winsted Fire Department was taken on Sunday during the fifth annual Connecticut State Firefighters Memorial Service at the Connecticut Fire Academy in Windsor Locks.

Thomas Langan was official recognized by the state of Connecticut as a line of duty death, along with Captain John Keane of Waterbury, who died on May 22, 2007, and Captain Joseph Pagano of Middletown, who died on Nov. 3, 2006.

Foreman Thomas Langan, 26, was a member of Winsted Fire Department Deluge Hose Company No. 2 and died on Dec. 6, 1899, as a result of injuries received while battling a fire on July 29, 1899, at the L.M. Jones Company.

Langan’s death had only become known to the fire department this past January. In August the department recognized Langan as a line of duty death with a ceremony at his grave site following the annual firemen’s parade. Langan’s family members served as honorary parade marshals and were presented with a clock from the fire department as part of the ceremony.

On Sunday the Langan family was presented with a plaque from the fire academy honoring Thomas Langan as a line of duty death in the state of Connecticut. The family gave the plaque to the Winsted Fire Department so that it can be displayed where Thomas once served.

"Connecticut firefighters, both professional and volunteer, selflessly and bravely protect life and property in the face of great danger," said Gov. M. Jodi Rell, keynote speaker at the ceremony. "We should all find ways to express our gratitude and appreciation for our Connecticut firefighters."

Rell proclaimed Sunday, Oct. 21, as "Firefighters Day" in Connecticut as a way to express her own thankfulness.

"I ask that we also recognize and honor those firefighters who have valiantly fallen in the line of duty. The Firefighters Memorial in Windsor Locks is a permanent reminder of the bravery and dedication of our firefighters. And when we envisioned this memorial, we wanted a place where we could perhaps find peace, say a silent prayer and then get on with our day. I say ‘get on with our day,’ because that is what our firefighters would want us to do," said Rell.

The granite memorial is located at the fire academy and etched with 322 names of Connecticut firefighters who have died on the job since 1852. During the ceremony, wreaths were placed at the monument. Members of the Winsted, Waterbury, Middletown and other fire departments stood at attention with full color guards during the hour-long ceremony.