Background: The scene of the crash on Route 222 in Richmond Township, Pennsylvania (WCAU/YouTube). Insets (from top to bottom): Walnuttown Fire Company Chief Jeffory Buck and Walnuttown Fire Company Assistant Chief Robert R. Shick, Jr. (Walnuttown Fire Department).
Two volunteer Pennsylvania firefighters were on an off-road vehicle searching for a missing woman when suddenly a car veered off the road and struck them, killing them both, authorities say.
Alexander Sepulveda Rivera, 26, faces a multitude of charges, including two counts of homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence, two counts of homicide by vehicle, accidents involving death or personal injury, and DUI, Berks County District Attorney John Adams said at a press conference streamed by regional NBC affiliate WCAU. Sepulveda is accused of causing the deaths of Walnuttown Fire Company Chief Jeffory Buck, 60, and Walnuttown Fire Company Assistant Chief Robert R. Shick, Jr., 56.
On April 4, first responders were searching for a missing 60-year-old woman in the area of Fleetwood, Pennsylvania, a borough in Berks County located about 60 miles northwest of Philadelphia. This search included members of the Walnuttown Fire Company.
Buck and Shick were in a utility terrain vehicle on the shoulder of Route 222 — otherwise known as Kutztown Road — driving “not very very fast,” Adams said. At the same time, Rivera was allegedly driving a Toyota Camry and “weaving back and forth on the roadway.”
Suddenly, Rivera “left his lane of travel and drove onto the shoulder of the roadway” and struck the UTV “head-on,” Adams added.
Rivera and another person in his vehicle “immediately fled the scene,” witnesses said, according to Adams” account of events. With witnesses’ help, the pair were apprehended nearby.
Rivera was read his Miranda rights, and “he admitted driving the vehicle,” Adams said. “He said he fell asleep, and he admitted he had smoked marijuana the same day; he was also found with a crack pipe, and he admitted that that crack pipe was his.”
The DA noted that Sepulveda did not have a driver’s license, and he didn’t believe that the defendant ever had one. He said that Rivera submitted to a blood test.
Rivera was booked into jail. Authorities made no mention of the person with Rivera being charged or suspected of a crime.
The crash has resulted in an outpouring of condolences for Buck and Shick.
“Rest easy chiefs, we got it from here,” the Walnuttown Fire Company posted on its Facebook page.
“I am deeply saddened to learn of the tragic loss of Chief Jeffory L. Buck and Assistant Chief Robert Shick of the Walnuttown Fire Company, who gave their lives in the line of duty while conducting a search on April 4, 2026,” Pennsylvania state Sen. Chris Gebhard said. “My heartfelt condolences go out to their families, friends, fellow firefighters, and the entire community as they mourn this tragic loss.”
