Duty called a volunteer firefighter in New Hampshire on Christmas Eve to the site of a fatal car crash, where fate dealt him a heartbreaking blow.
The mangled body of a dying woman he removed from the crushed SUV in the town of Brookline was his own daughter
Ellworth Austin said he knew both the volunteer firefighter, Steve Whitcomb, and the daughter, Katie Hamilton.
"It's a terrible tragedy," said Austin, who, like Whitcomb, runs a plumbing business in Brookline. "It's Christmas ... and everybody is pretty teary-eyed."
The firefighter didn't recognize his daughter's body at the time, police chief Bill Quigley told local newspaper The Union Leader.
"Her father was the one who pulled her out of the car without knowing it was her," Quigley said.
Hamilton, 30, died of her injuries caused when another vehicle struck hers from behind, pushing it into the opposing lane of traffic, where a third car collided with hers head on, Quigley told WMUR.
Hamilton leaves behind not only her father.
"I know that she is a young mother," Quigley said. "It's a sad, sad day for all of us, not just because it's Christmas Eve."
In Brookline, almost everyone knows Whitcomb and the tragedy he has suffered. The town of 4,000 holds Hamilton and Whitcomb in high regard, Quigley said.
The drivers of the other vehicles were not hurt. Police think the driver of the car that rear-ended Hamilton may have been distracted, the chief said.
"We are pretty certain that speed and impairment were not a factor so that would rule it down to driver distraction at this point," Quigley said.
Police are still investigating the cause, and no one has been charged, WMUR reported.
Girl whose wish inspired mass Christmas carol celebration dies
A little girl whose Christmas wish inspired thousands of people to sing in the streets died overnight.
Laney Brown, 8, suffered from leukemia.
"Our little angel on earth earned her pink glittery angel wings in heaven," a post on an official Facebook page about her said. "She took her last breath at home in her bed at 3:10 surrounded by all her family and friends. I miss her so much already."
Delaney Brown of West Reading, Pennsylvania, "inspired a community and touched hearts across the world," as CNN affiliate WFMZ put it.
She loved music and dancing.
Her dying wishes were to meet country music superstar Taylor Swift and for some people to come by her house for a night of caroling.
On Friday -- her birthday -- Laney and Swift video-chatted through FaceTime, a software application that allows callers to see each other on Apple products.
Then, Saturday night, the singers came. At first it was hundreds of people, then thousands. Then it was about 10,000.
She was too weak to go to the window, but heard the wonderful music.
"I can hear you now!!! Love you!" she said in a Facebook post that showed a photo of her lying in bed with a breathing mask -- and two thunbs up.
Laney was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia seven months ago. Last week doctors told her family that she had 70% cancer cells in her blood. She came home from the hospital Thursday.
The Christmas carol celebration outside her home attracted people from all over. Her dance team was there to honor her. Even Santa showed up.
Many of the singers held back tears.
"I can't even express how I feel," Krysta Rebe, who has a daughter Laney's age, told WFMZ.
It was only an hour of singing, but it lifted the spirits of everyone who jammed the block.
"As much as I want that miracle to be saving the life of an 8-year-old little girl, Laney, the miracle was an 8-year-old little girl teaching an entire community, town, city and the whole country the true meaning of Christmas," one participant, Marianne Franken, wrote on Facebook."
On Wednesday, thousands of people liked and commented on the Facebook post announcing the little girl's death.
"I do not cry for Laney, who lives on in peace and happiness with our Lord," wrote Cornell Stornbergh. "I mourn for us, who now have to live in a world without her."
Laney Brown, 8, suffered from leukemia.
"Our little angel on earth earned her pink glittery angel wings in heaven," a post on an official Facebook page about her said. "She took her last breath at home in her bed at 3:10 surrounded by all her family and friends. I miss her so much already."
Delaney Brown of West Reading, Pennsylvania, "inspired a community and touched hearts across the world," as CNN affiliate WFMZ put it.
She loved music and dancing.
Her dying wishes were to meet country music superstar Taylor Swift and for some people to come by her house for a night of caroling.
On Friday -- her birthday -- Laney and Swift video-chatted through FaceTime, a software application that allows callers to see each other on Apple products.
Then, Saturday night, the singers came. At first it was hundreds of people, then thousands. Then it was about 10,000.
She was too weak to go to the window, but heard the wonderful music.
"I can hear you now!!! Love you!" she said in a Facebook post that showed a photo of her lying in bed with a breathing mask -- and two thunbs up.
Laney was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia seven months ago. Last week doctors told her family that she had 70% cancer cells in her blood. She came home from the hospital Thursday.
The Christmas carol celebration outside her home attracted people from all over. Her dance team was there to honor her. Even Santa showed up.
Many of the singers held back tears.
"I can't even express how I feel," Krysta Rebe, who has a daughter Laney's age, told WFMZ.
It was only an hour of singing, but it lifted the spirits of everyone who jammed the block.
"As much as I want that miracle to be saving the life of an 8-year-old little girl, Laney, the miracle was an 8-year-old little girl teaching an entire community, town, city and the whole country the true meaning of Christmas," one participant, Marianne Franken, wrote on Facebook."
On Wednesday, thousands of people liked and commented on the Facebook post announcing the little girl's death.
"I do not cry for Laney, who lives on in peace and happiness with our Lord," wrote Cornell Stornbergh. "I mourn for us, who now have to live in a world without her."
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