Thomas Hetherington, 46, Middlesex firefighter and former Churchville fire chief, died operating a 2004 Ski-Doo snowmobile when he lost control and struck a tree on 12/7/18 in the Adirondacks. Mr. Hetherington was in the Adirondacks for the start of snowmobiling season in the North Country. He was driving near Raquette Lake in the town of Inlet. Police reported Mr. Hetherington may have been traveling too fast for icy conditions when his snowmobile ran off a curve and hit a tree. A friend who was traveling with him also crashed and tried to give aid, but could not save him. Mr. Hetherington was pronounced dead shortly after the accident. With a long career in fire protection, Mr. Hetherington had been a fire chief and was fire protection specialist/investigator with the state Office of Fire Prevention and Control. Mr. Hetherington’s work with the state Office of Fire Prevention and Control involved its arson bureau, and he also was a canine handler. Mr. Hetherington’s dog Taz was specially trained as an ignitable liquid search dog. The pair traveled to fire scenes around the state for investigations through the Office of Fire Prevention and Control. In Churchville, where Mr. Hetherington was a firefighter nearly 25 years, ultimately becoming chief.
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