‘Selfless’ brothers killed in crash after fighting Texas wildfire, officials say

Two brothers were returning home from fighting a Texas wildfire when they were killed in a crash, officials said.

“It is with a heavy heart that we confirm the passing of two of our members ... in the line of duty for the citizens of the community of Maxwell and Caldwell County, Texas,” the Maxwell Community Volunteer Fire Department and Caldwell Emergency Services District No. 2 wrote in a shared Facebook post.

Hunter Coco, 21, and his older brother, Jonathon Coco, 25, were “selfless volunteers” returning from a fire outside Lockhart, the agencies said.

As the brothers were driving back in a brush fire truck, the Lockhart Police Department says a female driver failed to yield at about 1:45 p.m. local time Monday, June 20. The woman was struck by the fire truck, and the truck rolled over.

The firefighters were killed in the wreck, authorities said, and the woman had minor injuries. She received a summons, like a citation, after police say she failed to yield for the right-of-way.

Jonathon Coco was a member of the Maxwell Community Volunteer Fire Department since 2016, and Hunter Coco had been serving for just over a year.

“The members of both the Department and District are grateful to all members of our community who have shown their support and eternal love to all of us and the Coco family in this very trying time,” the news release said.

The crash is under investigation.

Maxwell, in Caldwell County, is about 8 miles east of Lockhart and 30 miles south of Austin.

This story was originally published June 21, 2022 at 10:42 AM with the headline "‘Selfless’ brothers killed in crash after fighting Texas wildfire, officials say."