Henrico firefighter Lt. Buddy Barnes died of cancer. Now he'll be honored at a state memorial.
Table of Contents
The Commonwealth Public Safety Memorial will honor 19 new fallen heroes Saturday, including a Henrico County firefighter whose legacy extends far beyond his decades of service.
Lieutenant Willis "Buddy" Barnes, who served Henrico Fire for more than 30 years before retiring in 2017, will be among those memorialized at the ceremony beginning at 2 p.m. at the Capitol grounds.
Barnes died in 2022 of esophageal cancer, a disease that has become the leading cause of death among firefighters.
"It's synthetics, it's oil-based products. They're releasing just a carcinogenic soup, we call it, of chemicals," said William Boger, president of the Henrico Professional Firefighters Association.
Barnes was instrumental in developing Henrico County's HAZMAT program from its inception, working out of Station 21 for much of his career.
Click here to continue reading on WTVR.com, a Henrico Citizen partner organization.
