Wolf orders flags to half-staff to honor Rostraver paramedic
By TAYLOR BROWN
tbrown@yourmvi.com
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf has ordered commonwealth flags at all state facilities, public buildings and grounds be flown at half-staff to honor Rostraver West Newton Emergency Services paramedic Matthew Smelser.
Smelser, 43, of Carroll Township was killed Sunday while responding to a crash on Interstate 70. He was struck by a tractor trailer after getting out of his ambulance to help a victim near the Smithton exit.
“Matthew Smelser’s death is a tragic reminder of the risk taken by emergency personnel across the state each day to rescue Pennsylvanians in distress,” Wolf said. “We need to do our part to exercise caution while traveling, especially during winter weather or when approaching the scene of an accident.”
Smelser worked at RWNES for 24 years and spent at least 20 of those years as a supervisor.
Outside the ambulance station just off Route 201, co-workers set up a makeshift memorial for Smelser, who is survived by his wife, Lynn (Lenzi) Smelser, a young son, Logan, and daughter, Adriana. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Marshall Marra Funeral Home in Monongahela. His obituary appears on page A4.
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