Assistant Chief: Injured Firefighter Is Key Responder for Company

Gene Kirchner, 25, began his career with the Reisterstown Volunteer Fire Company when he was only 14.

"He has been a member for nine years. He is very smart, intelligent individual. He is a very key part of our company," said Assistant Chief Craig Hewitt, pausing frequently. "He is one of our key responders. He is here all the time."

On Wednesday, however, Kirchner is in critical condition at Maryland Shock Trauma after he was injured fighting an early-morning fire at a home in the unit block of Hanover Road.

Having a key member injured is emotionally difficult for the company, so firefighters, family members and friends have gathered at the station.

"Everybody's grouping together, coming together as a whole, supporting each other," Hewitt said during a news conference at 3 p.m. Wednesday at the station.

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"We have received a lot of support from companies in the area, as well as other companies in the state. So far everybody's holding up well," he said.

The fire company is off duty while members, family and supporters keep a vigil at the station, keeping updated on Kirchner's condition and the status of the investigation, he said.

"We've put this entire station out-of-service," Hewitt explained. "We have other fire companies that are covering our entire district for us throughout the entire incident."

And members of the community have stopped by "to say 'thank you,' and to offer meals," he said.

The parking lot at the VFC has been unusually full throughout the day Wednesday. "There are a high number of people to keep up-to-date on the situation," Hewitt said.

Kirchner, a Reisterstown resident who also grew up in Reisterstown, joined the company's junior volunteer ranks at age 14, and became a ranking member of the company at 16, Hewitt said.

"He's very active, he's a very key part of the fire company," he said. The company has "been in constant contact" with Kirchner's family since he was injured.

Meanwhile, the investigation continues to determine when and where the fire at the home began, said Elise Armacost, spokeswoman for the Baltimore County Fire Department.

Investigators are "looking at clues, talking to witnesses to find out when and where it started," she said during the news conference.

The fire began at the three-story Victorian, red-brick house at about 1 a.m. Wednesday. Kirchner, who was helping battle the blaze, was found at about 1:30 a.m. on the second story, Armacost said.

Steven Starr, 58, a civilian who was a resident of the home, died, she said. He was in cardiac arrest when firefighters found him, and was taken to Northwest Hospital where he was pronounced deceased.

There were four other occupants at the home, and they all got out uninjured, she said, noting that "at least several" are residents of the home.

The three-story Victorian home, which had been divided into apartments, showed heavy fire and smoke on the first floor that spread to the second floor, Armacost had said Wednesday morning.

Read more about the fire:

• Baltimore County: Reisterstown Firefighter in Critical Condition after Blaze
• Volunteer Firefighters Rally In Wake Of Injury

Editor's Note: In earlier stories about the fire, information obtained from sources on Gene Kirchner's age and length of service with the RVFC were incorrect. They have been corrected in this story.