Funeral plans announced for Philadelphia firefighter killed in collapse

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — The Philadelphia Fire Department announced the viewing and funeral details for the firefighter killed in the line of duty over the weekend. Lt. Sean Williamson, 51, died after a fire-damaged building collapsed in the Fairhill neighborhood on Saturday.

Officials say Lieutenant Sean Williamson, 51, was a 27-year veteran of the Philadelphia Fire Department. The blaze broke out around 2 a. m.

at a three-story restaurant and residential building on West Indiana Avenue. The fire had been put out, but then the building collapsed at 3:24 a. m.

Williamson was a 27-year veteran of the Philadelphia Fire Department and was most recently assigned to Ladder 18 in the city’s Hunting Park neighborhood. The first viewing will be held on Sunday evening, followed by a funeral on Monday morning: Viewings Sunday, June 26 from 6 to 9 p. m.

Monday, June 27 from 9 to 11 a. m. Epiphany of Our Lord Church 1121 Jackson St.

, Philadelphia Funeral Mass Monday, June 27 at 11 a. m. Epiphany of Our Lord Church 1121 Jackson St.

, Philadelphia Procession Shortly after the Mass, the PFD will stage a funeral procession beginning at Engine 59/Ladder 18/Medic 4, 2201 W. Hunting Park Ave. This procession of vehicles and apparatus will travel east on Hunting Park and turn right (south) on Broad until it reaches Stolfo Funeral Home, 2536 S.

Broad St. Meanwhile, Gov. Tom Wolf ordered that the commonwealth flag be flown at half-staff in Williamson’s honor at all Pennsylvania facilities, public buildings and grounds in Philadelphia until sunset on Friday, July 24, as well as on the day of Williamson’s funeral.

“All Pennsylvanians are invited to participate in this tribute,” the governor’s office said. CAUSE UNDER INVESTIGATION Five other people were injured in the collapse. Williamson was pronounced dead at the scene after he and another firefighter were freed from the rubble hours after the collapse.

Three other firefighters and an inspector with the city’s Department of Licenses and Inspections had been freed quickly. EMBED > More News Videos One firefighter has died after being trapped in a building that caught fire in Philadelphia and then collapsed Saturday morning, fire officials said. One firefighter jumped from the second story to avoid being caught in the collapse, Murphy said.

Two firefighters were hospitalized at Temple University Hospital while the other three victims were treated and released, officials said. The names of the injured members during the emergency response are: Lieutenant Sylvester Burton, Fire Marshal Lieutenant Clarence Johnson Firefighter Dennis Daly Firefighter Robert Brennan, Jr. Thomas Rybakowski, Supervisor, Emergency Services Unit, L&I The fire marshal’s office is investigating the cause of the fire with assistance from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Thiel said an engineering investigation into the collapse is also ongoing and the federal National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health is also expected to do an investigation, and that and the department’s own after-action report are expected to take one to two years. Fire Commissioner Adam Thiel told reporters Saturday evening that rescuers “were able to communicate with” Williamson and another firefighter for most of the several hours they remained trapped, but because of the degree of the collapse and where Williamson was located within the structure “we were not able to save him. ” The former Marine was “highly respected throughout our department” and had trained “countless” cadets, Thiel said.

Williamson is to have a “full honors” fire department funeral “and given the outpouring of support that I’ve seen and we’ve seen as a department, you can expect this to be a pretty large event. ” “We’re absolutely grieving, we’re mourning,” Thiel said. “We have a lot more crying and a lot more processing to do this unfolds as we move forward with properly honoring Lt.

Williamson,” he said. Murphy had told reporters at a briefing at about 8 a. m.

Saturday that: “It’s going to be a rough few weeks coming up. ” The Associated Press contributed to this report. Report a correction or typo.