NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Community members are mourning the death of Bobby Connelly, who started with the Nashville Fire Department (NFD) in 1959 and moved through the ranks of firefighter, engineer, captain, and district chief over the course of 53 years.
Another former chief from NFD, Buck Dozier, said Connelly will leave behind a huge legacy.
“Many people are going to use two terms this week — legend and hero — and most certainly, that’s what he was, but he’s more than that for most people, especially firefighters,” Dozier told News 2. “He heard things from citizens: their screams, their yells, their sobbing, even their good points.”
In 2003, Connelly was off-duty when he got a call from his sister-in-law about a fire at NHC Healthcare Center. Connelly’s 91-year-old mother was one of 16 casualties in the fire.
Dozier called Connelly a “firefighter’s firefighter” who loved to be where the action was and always looked out for others.
“Somebody would come up to me and say, ‘Where is Chief Connelly?’ I’d say, ‘Turn around.’ I said, ‘You see where the flames are, the hottest part of the fire?’ I said, ‘He’s either there or he’s en route to that position,'” Dozier explained. “He didn’t like to stand in the street. He liked to go in with the men and be a part of what they were trying to do.”
After five decades of firefighting, Connelly retired in 2013. The Metro Council named NFD Station No. 9 in his honor just a few months later. In addition, he worked with author Erin Cunningham to detail his storied career in the book “Refined by Fire: The Bobby Connelly Story.”
“His eyes saw things that most citizens never saw. His hands touched things that most citizens wouldn’t touch,” Dozier said.
Years ago, Dozier said a wall fell on Connelly at the intersection of 4th Avenue South and Chestnut Street, which almost killed him, but he survived with some broken bones. Dozier added that Connelly’s uniform and helmet were often black from confronting danger inside burning buildings.
Dozier recalled a conversation he had with Connelly: “I said he was a great firefighter. He said, ‘No, no, Chief, don’t ever say that.’ He said the best thing that you can ever say about a firefighter [is] ‘He was a good firefighter.’ And I’m here today to say…Chief Connelly was a good firefighter.”
According to Dozier, even in Connelly’s late 60s and early 70s, he volunteered to work in the Florida Everglades to help put out wildfires.
“They said he was just as good as the younger guys,” Dozier added.
Connelly was also chosen as the model for the firefighter statue at the 9/11 memorial in downtown Nashville.
Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell shared a statement with News 2 about Connelly’s death, saying, “Bobby Connelly showed what it meant to love your city and love your profession. For 53 years, he ran towards danger as a firefighter, and he was an example of selflessness and sacrifice. I am lucky to know him and will miss his spirit. I’m glad his legacy will live on as the fire hall he served in now bears his name.”
NFD’s hockey team posted to social media mourning the loss of Connelly, adding that at one point, he served as the team’s coach. The Nashville Firefighters’ Honor Guard also shared a message, saying Connelly had an illness caused by a line-of-duty injury and battled it “like a true HERO.”
Meanwhile, Box 55 — an organization meant to serve Nashville firefighters with on-scene hydration, nutrition, and body temperature regulation — wrote, “Our Box 55 team is saddened for the loss of a Nashville Fire Department Giant, Chief Bobby Connelly. The city lost a great one but Heaven received a HERO. Thank you Chief for your service and your love for others. It was a blessing to serve you for many years. You will be missed but never forgotten.”
A visitation will be held for Connelly at Woodbine Funeral Home: Hickory Chapel from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 12. The next day, there will be a visitation at Judson Baptist Church from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., followed by a service.
