Man faces homicide by vehicle charge, as community continues to mourn fire chief, asst. chief killed in Berks crash | Berks Regional News
RICHMOND TWP., Pa. – A Berks County community is suffering a huge loss. Both a fire chief and assistant chief were killed in a crash while serving in the line of duty over the weekend.
Officials say a New York man is being charged for driving under the influence when he swerved, hitting the UTV the firefighters were inside of.
Black cloth is draped across firetrucks, equipment, and signs Monday morning. And flowers were placed on the side of Route 222 in Richmond Township.
“You don’t really prepare yourself for an incident like this, let alone two at the same time,” said Lt. Ryan Tyson with Walnuttown Fire and Rescue.
The chief and assistant chief were killed Saturday night while on a missing person search.
“We will find some justice for these two volunteer firefighters who lost their life,” said Berks County District Attorney John Adams.
Adams says Walnuttown Fire Chief Jeff Buck and Assistant Chief Robert Shick were in a UTV on the side of the roadway when a car swerved, hitting them head on. Adams says both the driver and passenger of that car fled the scene but then were apprehended.
26-year-old Alexander Sepulveda-Rivera from the Bronx is facing two counts of homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence.
“At this point, he is in Berks County Jail as he had an outstanding warrant,” Adams said.
A procession Sunday paid respects as the firefighters took some time to grieve.
“It’s one thing to lose a member of the team, but to lose a family member is a lot more,” Tyson said.
Fellow firefighters say the husbands and fathers were also father figures to them, having been members of the team, since they were teens themselves.
“I just hope that we can still find guidance through them every day when we’re reporting and responding to these incidences,” Tyson said.
As for the passenger of that vehicle that hit the UTV, the DA says he’s not being charged at the moment, but they are investigating and that could change, since he fled the scene with the driver.
