GIRARD -- Louis L. Hannah's last trip through Girard was full of pomp and circumstance, and he wouldn't have approved.

Even Dobler Hose Co. Assistant Chief Fred Hyde admitted that.

"He would have been mad," he said.

But Hannah, who was a Dobler Hose firefighter and emergency medical technician for 69 years and chief for 34 years, was honored nevertheless with a blocks-long procession from Girard Alliance Church to Girard Cemetery.

Traffic along Rice Avenue from the church and through the downtown was stopped as Hannah rode in his last parade Monday morning in a fire-engine red casket atop a caisson pulled by two horses. Following was a riderless horse with black boots turned backward in the saddle's stirrups, a large walking contingent of Dobler Hose firefighters, and firetrucks and emergency equipment from every department in Erie County.

Along Rice Avenue and Main Street, groups of people stood at curbside or watched from second-floor windows as the procession made its way slowly to Girard Cemetery.

And when the riders dressed in Civil War uniforms drove the horses to the cemetery gates, ladders from the West Ridge and Kearsarge fire departments made an arch where an American flag hung as Hannah's casket passed underneath.

Hannah died May 31, just 21 days after he turned 96.

He joined Dobler Hose in 1936 and was known throughout the region as the oldest active firefighter in Pennsylvania, if not the nation.

Active until the end, he went on an ambulance call two weeks ago and had ridden in Girard's Memorial Day parade.

Dennis Suscheck, executive director of West County Paramedic Service, who met Hannah in 1971 when Suscheck joined Dobler Hose, said the poignant tribute was fitting for the man who was so giving and respected.

"I think he exemplified the ideal of a true volunteer with his dedication to his community and to the people he cared for on fire and ambulance calls,"Suscheck said. "His community came first."

After a graveside military service, firefighters embraced and talked about Hannah.

The emotional outpouring at the end wasn't surprising, Hyde said. "They had so much respect for the man," he said.

Firefighters and emergency workers packed Girard Alliance Church for Hannah's funeral service.

Dobler Hose firefighter Bob Ward talked about Hannah's sense of fun.

"Whether you knew him for 20 minutes or 50 years, I can guarantee, he had some impact on your life," Ward said.

Hannah was tough, but never held grudges and treated everyone with respect, Ward said.

He was known for his sometimes-colorful language and his adventures, like the time he was a crew member on the Flagship Niagara one summer when he was 83.

"His exploits are truly legendary," Ward said.

Firefighters stood at attention as West County Fire Control dispatcher Leigh George gave the "last call" that was heard over all Erie County police and fire monitors and over speakers at the grave site.

Hannah was "answering his last alarm," George said.

"One of the greatest chiefs in the history of the fire service is laid to rest," George said. Hannah had "touched the lives of everybody who knew him. Sail into the wind, old friend. You'll never be forgotten."

As she spoke, the siren at Dobler Hose was sounded and a LifeStar emergency helicopter flew overhead.

Originally posted by Lary Ellis (Top)
The link doesn't work, you have to be a registered member there to read that story.

Originally posted by spunbearing
Sounds like a heck of a guy. But I must have missed something. What would he have been mad about?

Originally posted by spunbearing
Sounds like a heck of a guy. But I must have missed something. What would he have been mad about?