Honoring heroes: past & present

: Local officials and dignitaries pause to pay their respects to Edward Peed, a Washington firefighter killed instantly when a wall of the Hoyt Store building fell on him during a fire at the Atlantic Coast Line freight warehouse Feb. 8, 1902. Peed, a 20-year veteran nozzleman with the all-black Salamander Fire Company, became the first firefighter on record to die in the line of duty in North Carolina. Washington Mayor Archie Jennings had signed a proclamation last week declaring Saturday as Edward Peed Day in the city. “Edward Peed was a worthy fireman and all the citizens of Washington regretted his sudden death,” Jennings said during the memorial program at Washington Fire Station No# 1. During the Edward Peed Memorial program, Washington Fire Chief Robbie Rose recognized firefighter/EMT Anthony Burton for exemplifying service to his country and the community. Burton, a former Marine who received the Purple Heart during one of two deployments to Iraq, attended the Wilson Fire Academy in 2008 and joined the Washington Fire/Rescue/EMS Department in 2009. (WDN Photos/Christ Prokos)