The Porterville Fire Department will honor the memory of two fallen firefighters one year after Capt. Ramon Figueroa and Patrick Jones died making sure nobody was trapped inside a burning library.
A virtual memorial service will be posted to the department's social media at 4 p.m. Thursday, officials announced. The service was prerecorded and is being shared online due to COVID-19 restrictions. The video will include an honor guard ceremony with speeches from Porterville Fire Chief Dave LaPere, the firefighters' families and other community leaders.
Dispatchers will also alert Tulare County fire stations at 4:16 p.m. — the time Figueroa and Jones entered the burning building — to broadcast a moment of radio silence honoring the fallen first responders. On Feb. 18, 2020, Figueroa and Jones were the first to arrive at the Porterville Public Library following a three-alarm structure fire.