The bell's five rings echoed eerily throughout Willard Chapel as the names of nine Auburn firefighters who made the ultimate sacrifice were read at Monday night's annual firefighter memorial service.

Each name added its own story to the fire department and the city's history.

Frank Murphy suffered an aneurysm while fighting a fire on Wall Street in 1927, Joseph Anton suffered a heart attack while fighting a fire in 1932, James McGee died fighting a fire in 1939, and John Gill died fighting a fire in 1942.

Lt. Irving Dwyer was the first Auburn firefighter to die in a fire when a wall collapsed on him during the Hislop Block fire which caused more than $500,000 in damage just before Christmas in 1931.

Alfred Murphy, John Searing and Anthony Contrera were killed in 1960 as they tried to clean up a gas leak at a gas station when a spark caused the building to explode. The explosion, which is considered to be the worst catastrophe in Auburn's history, also killed two civilians.

Patrick LaGambino was the last Auburn firefighter killed in action. LaGambino was attempting to escape from a burning house in 1973, when his oxygen-tank got stuck in the window and knocked him back into the building.

“A lot of [firefighters] have children,” said Dorthy Palmer, who attended the event. “This is just a reminder that when they leave they don't always come back.”

In his call to worship, Fire Chaplain James Enright said the hardest part of a firefighter's job was sitting around and waiting for an emergency call to come in. He added the hardest part for a firefighter's family was waiting for their loved-one to come home after work.

The ceremony also recognized the lives of the 207 firefighters who did come back but had passed away from natural causes throughout the years.

One by one all 216 names were read out loud by retired Assistant Fire Chief Mark Farrell and active firefighter Adrian Humphrey. As the names were read, their picture was displayed on a chapel wall giving friends and family a chance to recognize each firefighter who had passed before them.

“It was very nice to see all the men who have gone on just from our city alone,” said Cindy Mott who was attending the service in memory of her uncle Francis Dean.

The evening was a celebration of all the men who had gone before us, Auburn Fire Chief Mike Hammon said. No matter what kind of technology was used at the time or what kind of equipment they had, a firefighter's job will always come down to running into a burning building that everyone else is running out of.

Staff writer Nate Robson can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or nathan.robson@lee.net