Spencer Nelson (left) and Jason Lynch of the Seattle Firefighters Pipes and Drums Band. Photo by Sarah Waller.

Honoring Fallen Firefighters Through Music

03/14/2009

Cancer is the biggest danger that firefighters face in their jobs. Members of the Seattle Firefighters Pipes and Drums Band understand this fact all too well. They play at the funerals of firefighters who die in the line of duty, and cancer is often the cause of death. Spencer Nelson is a Seattle firefighter, recently named by his peers as Seattle Firefighter of the Year. He's the founding member of the Seattle Firefighters Pipes and Drums Band. One member of the band, Captain Smokey Simpson, has survived cancer. Spencer tells KUOW's Dave Beck that Smokey also survived one of the deadliest fires in Seattle history, the Pang International Foods warehouse fire in 1995.