PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. — A young Jacksonville firefighter has been identified of one of two victims in a fatal crash over the weekend.
Two men died on an ATV Saturday when it crashed into a pick-up truck, according to Florida Highway Patrol. The crash happened at the intersection of County Road 309 and Browns Fish Camp Road in Crescent City of Putnam County.
One of them, according to a First Coast News source, was 20-year-old Tanner Gillespie, who had just started serving as a Jacksonville Firefighter.
The Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department emailed a statement to First Coast News which said, "The JFRD family is mourning the loss of one of our own. This past weekend Firefighter Tanner Gillespie was tragically killed in an off-duty accident. Tanner recently became a JFRD firefighter and had a bright future ahead of him. In his short time on the department, Tanner quickly developed a reputation as a good firefighter and co-worker. Tanner was following in the footsteps of his father, retired JFRD Lieutenant Gene Gillespie and was assigned to Engine 30 in the Regency area of town. Please keep Tanner’s family and friends in your thoughts and prayers during this trying time."
According to our source, the other man who died was a 21-year-old who just went through firefighter training as well, but had not joined a fire department.
An FHP report says the two men were on an ATV, following a pick-up truck, traveling south on CR 309. When the truck slowed to turn onto Brown’s Fish Camp Road, the ATV did not have enough time to slow down and hit the truck. The ATV driver and Gillespie – who was the passenger on the ATV -- both died in the crash.
No one in the truck was physically hurt, according to the FHP report.
The Putnam County Sheriff’s office says it has seen an increase in golf carts and ATV’s traveling on paved roads. And that’s not legal unless the golf cart is in a golf cart community such as Welaka. But Saturday's incident was several miles south of Welaka.
Gillespie as well as the ATV driver were admired by the people who knew them.