Legislation sponsored by Senator Joseph F. Vitale that would designate State Highway 184 in Woodbridge Township as “Bruce Turcotte Memorial Highway,” in honor of a local firefighter of nearly four decades who died in the line of duty in 2012, has been signed into law.
“Although he is gone from the community, Chief Turcotte will never be forgotten in Woodbridge where he spent a lifetime selflessly serving and saving others as a volunteer firefighter,” said Senator Vitale (D-Middlesex). “He was a man who left a permanent mark on the community, one of great pride as a firefighter and of enduring devotion to the community.”
Bruce Turcotte joined the Hopelawn Engine Company No. 1 in Woodbridge Township in 1973 when he was only 20 years old and quickly rose through the ranks of the fire department, becoming the fire chief in 1983. During his tenure of more than 38 years with the volunteer fire company, he served in many positions, including president, company chaplain, and historian.
On Jan. 19‚ 2012‚ Turcotte responded with his son, Brian, Hopelawn’s assistant fire chief, along with their crew to a house fire where he was assigned to the rapid intervention crew at the scene. It was during that deployment that he was found unresponsive behind the wheel of Hopelawn’s rescue truck after suffering a fatal heart attack.
Beyond his life at the fire company, Turcotte was a life member of the New Jersey State Firemen’s Association, an Executive Board member of the Woodbridge Township Fire Officers Association, was the Woodbridge Township mutual aid fire coordinator, and the secretary of the United Firemen’s Relief Association of Fords, Keasbey and Hopelawn.
“Honoring the life and public service of a man who was genuinely loved and respected by his family, colleagues, and others in the community exemplifies our gratitude for the countless contributions he made to Woodbridge Township and its residents,” said Senator Vitale. “I am pleased that his memory will live on in Woodbridge.”
Turcotte was born in Newark and lived most of his adult life in Fords.
