Fire engines adorned with American flags were stationed on every Interstate 20 overpass in Meridian on Tuesday as Meridian and Lauderdale County firefighters, as well as members of the Mississippi Air National Guard paid their respects to two fallen Mississippi National Guardsmen.
Chief Warrant Officer 4 Bryan Andrew Zemek, 36, and Chief Warrant Officer 4 Derek Joshua Abbot, 42, were killed Friday, Feb. 23, after the AH-64 Apache helicopter they were flying as part of a routine training flight crashed in rural Prentiss County.
Zemek served as a standardization instruction pilot in the 149th Aviation Regiment, while Abbot served as a maintenance test pilot in the 151st Lakota Medical Evacuation unit. Both guardsman were stationed at the Mississippi National Guard Aviation Support Facility in Tupelo.
A motorcade carrying Zemek’s body passed through the Meridian area shortly after 10 a.m. Tuesday on its way to the 172nd Airlift Wing in Flowood where it was scheduled to be transported to Pensacola, Florida, aboard a C-17 Globemaster 3. He was set to be buried at the Barrancas National Cemetery in Pensacola on Wednesday.
Meridian Fire Chief Michael Evans said MFD engines were stationed at every overpass in the city to honor Zemek as the motorcade passed through. Meridian is a military town, Evans said, and it is important for the community to show its support for service members whenever possible.
“We received a call last night that said two of our military members that died in the helicopter crash a few weeks ago was coming through Meridian, and we just thought it was important for us to come out and show our respect to the family, to the service members who gave their lives for our country and just be a part of it and say, ‘Thank you. We appreciate what you’ve done, and we won’t ever forget your sacrifice you made for our country,’” he said.