Engineer William C. Richards of Engine Co. 4 died on September 13, 1940.  On October 23, 1939 Engineer Richards was fighting a fire on October 23, 1939 at the Diamond City Beef Company located at 816 W. Lackawanna Ave. Fifteen firefighters were injured while fighting the blaze, only two were reported in the newspaper.  Most of the the firefighters were overcome by smoke. He died as a result of complications due to smoke inhalation.

(Courtesy of the Mark Boock Collection)