Firefighter Record
Firefighter Details
| Name | John Gart |
| Agency | Gurnee Fire Department |
| Rank | Firefighter |
| Type of Firefighter | Volunteer |
| Age Range | 51 to 55 |
| Sex | Male |
| Date of Birth | 0/0/0 |
| Date of Death | 2/14/1932 |
| Cause of Death | Thrown from vehicle |
| Nature of Death | Trauma |
| Attribute of Death | [not applicable] |
| Type of Duty | Responding to/returning from incident |
Incident Details
| Incident Name | N/A |
| Incident City | Gurnee |
| Incident State | IL |
| Incident Date | 2/14/1932 |
| Incident Location | Street/Road |
| Incident Attribute | Traffic accidents |
Incident Summary
On February 14, 1932, Firefighter John Gart of the Gurnee Fire Department died in the line of duty when he was thrown from a fire truck while responding to a brush fire. A five year volunteer with the department, Gart suffered severe skull fractures in the accident, and died several hours later during emergency surgery at St. Therese Hospital. Gart, who worked full-time as a hardware store clerk, had fractured his arm several years prior to the accident, an injury that fellow firefighters retrospectively suggested had deprived him of his full strength and ability to adequately hold onto the moving fire truck.
Citations:
“Gurnee Fireman Killed in Fall,” Waukegan News-Sun, February 15, 1932.
Firefighter and Incident Images
