A 25-year-old firefighter who spent more than a decade answering calls across two Berkshire County towns died Thursday morning when his car left Route 41 in Richmond and caught fire. Christopher Lee Kilmer was declared dead at the scene after his Hyundai Sonata crossed into the opposite lane and crashed into the woods near 2715 State Road.
Kilmer was driving north on Route 41 when the crash happened on October 29, according to the Berkshire Eagle. His Hyundai Sonata caught fire before first responders arrived, and WWLP reported that the vehicle was fully engulfed in flames by the time crews reached it. West Stockbridge Fire and County Ambulance personnel declared Kilmer dead at 9:53 a.m. once the fire was extinguished, according to iBerkshires.
As of October 31, officials had not shared information about what caused the crash, and the Berkshire Eagle's initial report noted that the driver's identity and the circumstances behind it had not yet been released. The State Police Detective Unit and Collision Analysis & Reconstruction Section both responded to the scene, the outlet reported, underscoring the scale of the investigation into exactly how the sedan ended up off the road.
A Decade of Service Across Two Departments
Kilmer had served most of his adult life with the West Stockbridge Fire Department, according to the department, and also belonged to the Alford Fire Department. The Berkshire Edge reported that Kilmer proudly served his community for 11 years. He served alongside his own mother and brother within the West Stockbridge department, a family bond that ran through his entire firefighting career.
The department said Kilmer was often among the first firefighters to arrive whenever the fire tones sounded, and that he completed every task asked of him at a fire scene. Outside of his volunteer firefighting, he worked as a tow truck driver for EMS Automotive in Pittsfield, a job that, according to the company, had him responding to calls to help stranded drivers at any hour of the day or night.
Remembered for Faith, Hobbies and Family
Kilmer also volunteered at West Stockbridge Village Congregational Church, where he helped with the church's Halloween events and pancake breakfasts. In his free time, the GoFundMe organizer said, he enjoyed fishing, dirt biking, welding and repairing cars, interests that filled the hours between fire calls and tow jobs.
He is survived by his mother, three brothers, his grandmother, his German shepherd, and a wide circle of family members and friends, according to MassLive. Memorial services were still being arranged as of the outlet's report. A GoFundMe organizer wrote that Kilmer's greatest passions included firefighting and said his life had a significant impact during his 25 years, with the campaign having raised more than $14,000 toward a $16,000 goal as of November 1.
Funeral arrangements had not yet been announced, according to WWLP's report. For the firefighters and neighbors who knew him in West Stockbridge and Alford, the loss leaves a gap in two small departments that depended on him showing up first when the tones went out.
