As Asheville Fire Chief Scott Burnette stood speaking during a memorial dedication for Capt. Jeff Bowen at Mission Health on Thursday afternoon, he had to stop when nearby firetruck sirens rang out. (Photo of Scott Burnette by Caitlin Byrd)
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As Asheville Fire Chief Scott Burnette stood speaking during a memorial dedication for Capt. Jeff Bowen at Mission Health on Thursday afternoon, he had to stop when nearby firetruck sirens rang out. (Photo of Scott Burnette by Caitlin Byrd)
In a shorter-than-usual Asheville City Council meeting, fresh food markets in residential neighborhoods got the go-ahead, as did over $400,000 in affordable housing trust fund loans to two projects. (Photo by Bill Rhodes)
A group of local fire fighters have mounted a fundraising effort to help the family of Capt. Jeff Bowen, who died July 28, 2011, while responding to a fire at the medical office building at 445 Biltmore Avenue.
Among other actions, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Jan. 3 to request that the North Carolina Board of Transportation dedicate the Smoky Park Bridge in honor of Capt. Jeff Bowen’s. Here’s a list of highlights from the board’s first meeting of 2012.
The July 28 fire that killed Asheville Capt. Jeff Bowen was deliberately set, according to a report just released by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Asheville Fire and Police departments, and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. No further details are available at this time, and anyone with information about the crime should contact the AFT Arson Hotline (888-ATF-FIRE), the APD’s Crimestoppers hotline (828-255-5050) or the N.C. SBI’s hotline (800-334-3000). For the full release …
Capt. Jeff Bowen’s funeral is set for 11 a.m. today, Aug. 2, at Biltmore Baptist Church, and while the community is invited to pay their respects, officials expect “significant traffic delays” and congestion during the procession to and from the church. Bowen died on Thursday, July 28, while fighting a major fire at a Biltmore Avenue medical building. The fire injured almost a dozen other firefighters and caused significant damage to the building, which may not re-open for several months. City officials report that about 25 fire vehicles will take part in the procession today, escorting Bowen’s body from the Groce Funeral Home on Patton Avenue to Biltmore Baptist. Traffic delays are also expected from noon to 2 p.m., when Bowen will be returned to the funeral home.