ASHLAND, MA — August 21, 2026 — The Ashland Fire Department commemorated the 63rd anniversary of the line-of-duty deaths of Fire Chief Charles Moran, Firefighter John Rebenacker, and Lieutenant Norman E. Barry on August 21, 1963, while responding to a fire in nearby Framingham.

The Central Coal Company on Route 9 in Framingham was the target of the three firefighters' mutual assistance response. The official memorial material from the Ashland Fire Department states that the fire began in a coal shed just before 7 p.m. and then spread to a neighboring oil tank. Later, Moran, Barry, and Rebenacker were killed when the tank burst.

In Ashland's history, Moran, Barry, and Rebenacker were the first firefighters to be murdered while performing their duties. Fire departments from throughout the area responded to the incident, including Framingham, Natick, Wayland, Weston, Sudbury, Southborough, Holliston, Wellesley, Walpole, Hudson and Marlborough, according to the Ashland Fire Department.

The loss remains part of Ashland Fire Department's history and is remembered by current members more than six decades later. The department's official memorial page lists the three firefighters among its line-of-duty deaths.

The Ashland Fire Department also maintains a memorial honoring its fallen members. The Ashland Historical Society notes that a 50-year memorial for Moran, Barry and Rebenacker brought community members together to remember the three firefighters.