Family and friends gathered Tuesday evening near the County Administrative Complex in South Bryan for a dedication ceremony to honor a Bryan County firefighter who lost his life in the line of duty and whose name also is now officially a county street.
Terrell G. Nielsen Drive is the now officially the first street to the left after turning on to Capt. Matthew Freeman Drive off of Hwy. 144. Though the street is not developed yet, it will one day lead to a new county fire station.
“Since Terry was really the first fireman that Bryan County ever lost in the line of duty, we felt that we needed to do something for a long-term memory of his service to the county,” County Commission Chairman Jimmy Burnsed said.
Nielsen, who served as a volunteer firefighter with the Bryan County Fire Department, died in September 2010 after he developed necrotizing fasciitis, also known as the “flesh-eating disease,” during a training exercise that June.
“Terry was one of those people that was always there for anything that we did,” South Division Fire Chief Mike Smith said. “He was always there helping people out, he mentored the younger members. He was just an all-around good person and a loyal friend.”
Read more in the Nov. 26 edition of the News.