His wife Kelly and son Brandon
While responding to a mutual aid response, an accident occurred while the engine was heading south. It rounded a blind 90 degree curve, and as it did, it came across a northbound car ahead making a left-hand turn from the narrow single-lane highway. It is believed the driver, upon seeing a car, swerved to avoid a collision,and the pumper's center of gravity shifted. The engine veered off the road, striking a guardrail, went down an embankment and flipped over. The engine came to rest on its back entrapping five of the six onboard. One of the three occupying the cab escaped serious injury when he was thrown through the windshield.
There are currently no tributes for Firefighter Gary W. Van Vactor.