Veteran firefighter saluted by colleagues after dying from work-related cancer
Vancouver firefighters have vowed to continue the fight against work-related cancer after the death this week of long-serving firefighter, Capt. Steve Letourneau.
Letourneau died Wednesday at age 59 after a lengthy battle with colorectal cancer. He was diagnosed in November 2014, the cancer a result of exposure to chemicals while on the job.
“Early this morning we lost a very good man — one of the best I’ve ever met,” Vancouver Fire Chief Darrell Reid wrote on Wednesday after Letourneau’s death. “A smart, wise, funny man who made a huge impact on so many of us. A leader, a communicator and a person who was so courageous and strong that he lived for years when all the experts told him over-and-over he had only weeks.”
Letourneau is among the city’s most respected fire officials, having served at all 20 firehalls in Vancouver. After his diagnosis, doctors told him he had just months to live. It didn’t stop Letourneau from standing proudly in Vancouver City Hall chambers in 2019, surrounded by family, friends and firefighters, when he was honoured for his 35 years of service with the Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services (VFRS).
“We’ve lost one of our own. A firefighter like no other,” read an online tribute shared Wednesday from the Vancouver Fire Fighters’ Local 18. “After a lengthy battle with job-related cancer caused by his many years protecting the citizens of Vancouver, Brother Steve Letourneau is now at peace. Our hearts are broken.
“Rest easy Steve, we will take it from here.”
Over the years, Letourneau had been vocal about the need to expand the list of work-related cancers covered by the B.C. Workers Compensation Act. In 2016, the province expanded the act to cover breast cancer, prostate cancer and multiple myeloma as occupational diseases. In 2019, MLA Harry Bains tabled amendments to the act that would further expand coverage for those working around fires.
“Steve died as a result of his work as a Vancouver firefighter. I know from our talks how important he felt (decontamination), cancer screening and other health and wellness initiatives are, and I want to also thank all of you who fight to make VFRS better at how we take care of our members,” Reid said in the closing of his tribute. “Steve lived a life worth celebrating in a way worth admiring. He will be missed, but he will not be forgotten.”