Life and service of Caulfield firefighter honored after fatal crash claims life
Ozark County officials lowered the courthouse flag to half-staff last week in honor of Caulfield firefighter Richard Clewett, who died in a fiery crash.
Caulfield firefighter Richard Clewett
Richard Clewett’s call number of 1409 was retired by the Caulfield Membership Fire Department after his death Dec. 13.
Caulfield resident and local volunteer firefighter Richard Clewett, 39, was laid to rest at a family cemetery Friday in a service with full military honors. Clewett was killed in a Dec. 13 crash on V Highway, about two and a half miles west of Caulfield.
He was a Caulfield volunteer firefighter, Navy veteran and a welder and fabricator who had worked at Timberland in West Plains for the last seven years. He leaves behind a wife and three children.
Caulfield Fire Chief Shannon Sisney said that the Caulfield fire department is mourning the loss of a fallen brother. “I want to say right from the start that this is never easy for a chief, or for that matter - anyone, but we are such a close-knit group that we are truly family. We all depend on each other so much in everyday life and in many other ways. If one of our family members needs help, we will be the first one there no matter what is needed or what time it is,” Sisney told the Times Monday. “I want to thank all the departments that responded to the crash that day. These men and women were so respectful and helped us so much.”
The Missouri State Highway Patrol’s online crash report says that Clewett was driving a 2000 GMC Sierra eastbound on Highway V around 11:45 a.m. that Wednesday morning when he ran off the right side of the roadway, struck a ditch, returned to the road, crossing the centerline.
The truck then traveled off right side of the roadway again, the vehicle rolled, then caught fire. Clewett was pronounced dead at 12:50 p.m. by Ozark County Coroner Gene Britt.
When the report of a crashed car on fire was first received by the Ozark County Sheriff’s Office, the Caulfield VFD was called to the scene as the primary department. Bakersfield and Tecumseh VFDs also responded in mutual aid.
After working the scene for a bit, the first responders realized that Clewett was the victim in the fiery crash, and Bakersfield and Tecumseh firefighters took the lead to allow Caulfield firefighters to stand back in honor of their fellow firefighter.
“Firefighter Clewett joined the department just a few short months ago as [volunteer firefighter call number] 1409. In the short time he was with us he made a huge impact, and he was a great asset to the department as well as the community. Clewett was always willing to step up and help with whatever was needed, no matter what it was or what he was doing at the time. That is a hard quality to find in people today. He was a great person and cared about those in his life more than people may have known. He served his country in the Navy, and he wanted to keep serving his community with us. He was a welcomed addition to this team and his family was also welcomed into our family.”
Sisney said he met Clewett before he joined the fire department and had talked with him on several occasions about helping out.
“When you talk to someone just about every day you get a pretty good understanding of what kind of person is, and I am here to tell you that Richard Clewett was one of the good ones. Volunteering with the fire department, being trained to better help the community, that was something he felt strongly about. Clewett is a part of the CMFD family and that will never change. He and his family is and will forever be part of us.”
The Caulfield Membership Fire Department is planning a benefit event that will be held in the near future with all of proceeds going to Clewett’s wife, Savannah, and their children. Information will be posted to the Caulfield Membership Fire Department’s Facebook page and will be shared by the Ozark County Times.
“I would like to personally thank everyone for all of the calls, texts and support that you all have showed the fire department as well as the Clewett family. While we were at the funeral, along with several fellow firefighters from several other fire departments, our district was covered by Pottersville and Bakersfield VFDs. This is what should be done. We take care of our own.” Sisney said that Clewett’s call number, 1409, has been officially retired.
“Richard, you may be gone, but brother you will never be forgotten. Rest easy brother, we have it from here.”