Additional Information and Media Logistics for Memorial Service for Fire Captain Joel Barnes
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, March 5, 2019
Media Contact: Jordan Mayblum
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: [email protected]
Additional Information and Media Logistics for Memorial Service for Fire Captain Joel Barnes
BERWICK, Maine — Berwick Fire & Rescue Chief Dennis Plante and Town Manager Stephen G. Eldridge are providing a public update on the memorial service for Berwick Fire Captain Joel Barnes.
Services and burial will take place on Sunday, March 10. There will be two services: A private mass and a public memorial ceremony.
The family will attend a Catholic funeral mass, which will be said at a local funeral home early in the morning. That service is only for family and close friends and is closed to the news media. The family has asked that their privacy be respected.
Memorial Service
The details of the public fire service memorial are as follows:
WHEN:
Sunday, March 10, 2019
11 a.m.
WHERE:
Cross Insurance Arena
1 Civic Center Square
Portland, ME 04101
MEDIA LOGISTICS
Media are welcome to attend the memorial service, and broadcast cameras are allowed.
Journalists interested in attending the funeral are asked to RSVP by filling out a short form here. A media liaison will be on site for the duration of the ceremony. The media relations liaison can be reached by phone or text message at 978-971-8101 on the day of the ceremony.
Media members are asked to enter the building through the Bath Savings Entrance on Spring Street. Members of the media should plan to arrive by 9 a.m. to meet with the media liaison on site and ensure access to the area ahead of scheduled road closures.
Details on designated media parking are expected to be announced tomorrow.
All reporters will be admitted to the press box area of the venue. Broadcast videographers will be escorted to the floor in front of Section N where all video cameras will set up. One video camera per news station will be permitted inside the venue. Still photographers working on the floor will be restricted to the area in front of section N once the ceremony begins.
All broadcast cameras must be wireless. There will be no cabling permitted.
The procession is expected to arrive at the venue at approximately 10:15 a.m.
FIREFIGHTER LINEUP AND HONOR GUARDS
Firefighters intending to line the route to the venue should arrive no later than 9:30 a.m. More details about platoon lineups will be released as soon as possible.
Honor guards interested in participating in the memorial service should contact Chris Thomson at 207-831-6295.
BURIAL
The burial service is private for family members and the Berwick Fire Department only.
There will be no media admitted at the burial service.
FOR OUT OF TOWN FIREFIGHTERS
Logistics, including hotel accommodations, staging, and mustering of out of town firefighters is expected to be announced tomorrow. A future update will include maps of the area identifying best routes into town, as well as parking details.
Buses transporting attendees to the services should stage at 6 Portland Fish Pier. The staging area is approximately an 11 minute walk from the arena.
Agencies are asked not to bring fire apparatus to the memorial due to traffic and logistical concerns.
OUT OF TOWN FIRE DEPARTMENT ATTENDANCE FORM
PIPES AND DRUMS/COLOR GUARDS
Pipe bands with questions can also contact Dave McLean of the Professional Firefighters of New Hampshire Pipes and Drums: (603-661-1940 or [email protected])
MUTUAL AID CONTINUES
Mutual aid station coverage for Berwick has been provided by ambulance companies and fire departments from across Maine and New Hampshire, and that assistance will continue through at least Sunday.
VIGIL CONTINUES
Firefighters have maintained their 24-hour constant vigil over the body of Captain Barnes, and that will continue uninterrupted until Sunday.
FUND ESTABLISHED
The family of Captain Barnes requests that any donations being made in his name go to the Berwick Volunteer Firefighters Association in his memory c/o Kennebunk Saving Bank, 2 School St., Berwick, ME 03901.
ADDITIONAL UPDATES
This is the latest of several updates that will be distributed as new information becomes available.
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Captain Barnes, age 32, was a paramedic and served as the Berwick Fire & Rescue training officer and emergency medical services coordinator. He previously worked for the Horry County, South Carolina Fire Rescue Department, South Berwick Rescue, York Ambulance and the Old Orchard Beach Fire Department before joining Berwick Fire in July 2016. He was also an active per diem firefighter for Town of Acton, Maine.
Captain Barnes died in a large apartment fire on Bell Street Friday, March 1. The origin and cause of the fire remain under investigation. Captain Barnes was leading another firefighter in an interior attack of the fire when conditions suddenly worsened.
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