MERRILL – The death of a former Merrill Fire Chief has officially been recognized as a line of duty death, Merrill Fire Department Chief Josh Klug announced today.
On the morning of Oct. 7, 1941, Chief Adlord Talbot, 60, failed to join his crew for morning shift change at the now former No. 1 fire station, which stands at 701 E. First St. When his fellow firefighters went to check on him, they found Talbot dead in his bed of an apparent heart attack.
At that time, deaths such as Talbots were not considered line of duty deaths, Klug said.
While doing research on another matter, local historian Michael Caylor came across Talbot’s death record and noted the place of death was listed as the fire station, according to a Merrill Fire Department news release. Caylor spoke with Talbot’s daughter, 93-year-old Monica Talbot. She confirmed the details of her father’s death.
Further, Caylor was able to produce Talbot’s death certificate and obtain copies of the activities of Talbot on the day before his death from Merrill Fire Department records. Those records, which are preserved at the Merrill Historical Society, included a fire call and, according to his daughter’s memory, doing fire inspections.
The information was submitted to the Wisconsin Fire and EMS Memorial for review. WFEM President James Luty declared Talbot’s death as having occurred in the line of duty.
Talbot’s name will be added to a memorial both at the Merrill Fire Station and in Wisconsin Rapids at the Wisconsin Fire and EMS Memorial. A dedication will be held in the future.
