chicagoWhen a firefighter was on his way to a fire truck to fight a blaze last Tuesday night, he heard over the radio that another fire scene was his own house. His seriously injured wife. The fire still claimed the lives of his wife and three children under the age of 10. Facing the pain of losing a loved one, firefighters agreed to donate the organs of four family members in the hope of extending the lives of others who need transplants.
The Chicago Fire Department said the firefighter, Walter Stewart, lived with his wife and three children in a two-story detached home in the Montclair district of Chicago. He was about to start work when he was on his way to a fire at Old Norwood Park Fire Truck 55 when he heard on a radio near 2500 North Rutherford Avenue that his house was on fire and he immediately went back home.
Although firefighters quickly pulled four people out of the house and sent them to the hospital, Stewart’s seven-year-old son Ezra (Ezra Stewart) died the next day (the 8th) and his 36-year-old son. Wife Salmer (Summer Day-Stewart later died on the 9th, as did their two-year-old son Emory Day-Stewart and nine-year-old daughter Autumn Day-Stewart on the 10th.
According tocookThe county medical examiner’s office said Stewart, the mother and the child all died of smoke inhalation. According to officials, the fire started in the kitchen and a smoke alarm was also installed in Stewart’s home. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
The fire department said that following the tragic, shocking deaths, four members of the Stewart family agreed to donate organs to others in need of transplants.
The Chicago Firefighters Union is starting a fundraiser at classy.org/give/473700 to help Stewart cope with this “speakable tragedy,” the fire department said. The family is in my mind and praying for them.”
location (translate to tag) chicago
