‘He always had a helping hand’: N.C. community remembers firefighter killed in Horry County crash

TABOR CITY, N.C. (WMBF) - The small community of Tabor City is coming together to remember a volunteer firefighter killed in a weekend crash.

“He wanted to have a family. That was his biggest thing. He wanted to have a wife and kids,” said Robert Hill.

Hill is 20-year-old Danny “DJ” Nobles Jr.’s stepfather.

Horry County Deputy Coroner Patty Bellamy said Nobles died after a wreck around 1:30 a.m. on Highway 501 Business Saturday morning.

Nobles was a passenger in a car and was pronounced dead at the scene, according to Bellamy.

Officials said the driver, who has not been identified, was taken to a local hospital with injuries.

While in high school, Nobles joined the Tabor City Fire Department as a junior firefighter. When he turned 18, he officially became a volunteer.

“He’s always loved big red trucks. His grandfather was part of the fire department. He’s always been around it. His uncle even volunteered with the fire department,” said Hill.

Considered a rising star early on, Chief Jeff Fowler always thought of Nobles as one of his sons.

“He wanted to learn. His first year, he got junior firefighter of the year. He really was just willing to help anybody,” said Fowler.

Colleagues who worked side-by-side with Nobles echoed Fowler’s comment.

“He always had a lot of spunk to him. He wanted to-- he always wanted to go in first, and we had to slow him down a couple of times,” said Jonathan Bullock, Firefighter.

Since learning the tragic news over the weekend, Summer Norris decided to step up and raise money for the family by selling t-shirts and stickers.

“DJ did a lot for our community so I wanted to give back to his family. He always had a helping hand, which is why I decided on this design,” said Norris.

T-shirts are $20, stickers are $6. For more information on how they can be purchased, click here.

A visitation will be held on Tuesday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Worthington Funeral Home. Funeral services will follow on Wednesday at 2 p.m. at Forest Lawn Baptist Church. A burial will follow the service at the Myrtle Green Cemetery. The public is invited to attend.

The Conway Police Department is investigating the cause of the crash.

The last update WMBF News

Copyright 2024 WMBF. All rights reserved.