Broken Helmets Mute

Evidence Of Valor – March 30, 1964

Taken from the Daily-Citizen News, written by “Rip” Whitfield

Three shattered, broken helmets lay on the floor of the Dalton Fire Dept., this morning. They are mute evidence that three good men gave their lives battling a fire.

Several firemen stood reverently about the helmets and talked quietly about their three comrades who will fight fire no more, and of a forth firemen who lay seriously injured in Hamilton Memorial Hospital

The three men were killed and the other injured when a wall collapsed this morning as they battled a blaze at Commercial Mills.

The dead are Lt. Charles (chigger) Joyce, 38; Johnnie W. Wofford, 38; John Earl Ingle, 23. Injured is Raymond Phelps, 29.

These men were on the shift that went, to work yesterday at 8 a.m. and would have been relieved at 8 a.m. today.
On Job Easter Day

They were not able to be with their families on Easter. They spent their last day carrying out their job of protecting the City from fire,

“Tragic” was the word Fire Chief Luther Broome used to describe the events as he gathered up the personal effects of the three dead firemen and prepared to turn the articles over to their families.
“Great Shock”

Chief Broome said the men were just like brothers and it was a great shock to the entire department.

“The nine men on each shift spend half their lives together and the impact is terrific,” the fire chief stated.

Mr. Broome said, “These men eat and sleep together. The loss has been a great shock.”

Each shift of nine men works 24-hours and-is-off for 24 –hours.

Both shifts were on duty early this morning and most of the men appeared nervous and upset over the death of their brother firemen.
Knew It Would Come sometime

“It’s something we have talked about happening and we knew that it would happen sometime,” said Clarence Bramblett, one of the firemen.

Another firemen, Gordon Coker said “When you are working, you don’t have time to think about an accident.” He added, “It is just like an automobile accident. You always think about it happening to the other fellow.”
Firemen Work Quietly

The firemen went quietly about their work this morning, drying hoses and cleaning equipment. There was no chatter and when someone spoke it was almost in a whisper.

There was a stream of visitors during a short period that a Daily-Citizen-News reporter was in the fire hall, including Mayor Carlton McCamy, Alderman Marvin Hackney, Superior Court Judge Tom Pope, and Rep. Tom Mitchell.

The telephone rang constantly and Chief Broome was kept busy answering newsmen’s inquiries from various cities, some as far away as Jacksonville, Fla