PLYMOUTH, Ind. (AP) – A new memorial has been dedicated to honor five northern Indiana firefighters who died in a crash more than 30 years ago.
More than 100 people gathered for Sunday's dedication ceremony of the black stone monument near the crash scene a few miles west of Plymouth. The monument replaces a memorial of five wooden crosses placed soon after the July 1982 crash of a fire engine heading to a reported house blaze.
Brandon Van Vactor was a year old when his father Gary died in the crash. He tells WSBT-TV he's grateful for the monument, which has images of those killed and a description of what happened.
Former fire chief Wayne Smith tells WNDU-TV the memorial will let people many years from now know what happened at the site.