Deputy state fire marshal & FBI agent struck & killed on I-270 in Maryland
Sadly, @mcfrs learned this morning of the untimely passing of Sander Cohen, a Lieutenant w/ the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department & a Deputy Chief w/ MD State Fire Marshal’s Office, Maryland State Police. – he was involved in a collision on I270 near Falls Rd 12/8 ~10p pic.twitter.com/8t7lIYgzc5
— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) December 9, 2017
The two off-duty law officers killed last (Friday) night on I-270 have now been identified as FBI agent Carlos Wolff, 36, and Maryland Deputy Fire Marshal Sander Cohen, 33, who was also a lieutenant at the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department in Montgomery County, Maryland.
Two off-duty law enforcement officers are dead following a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 270 that diverted traffic for hours overnight.
Montgomery County police said the crash happened in the fast lane of southbound I-270, north of Gude Drive, around 10 p.m. Friday.
Chief Spokesperson for Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services Pete Piringer tweeted around 5:30 a.m. Saturday that Sander Cohen, 33, a lieutenant with the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department and deputy Maryland Fire Marshal, an agency of the Maryland State Police, died following the crash.
MD State Police say off-duty Deputy Chief Sander Cohen with the Office of the State Fire Marshal died last night trying to help a driver in an accident on 270. The man he helped, FBI agent Carlos Wolff, also hit & killed by a vehicle that went onto the shoulder. pic.twitter.com/ytDdzrM0jG
— Tom Roussey (@tomroussey7news) December 9, 2017
According to Piringer, Cohen, driving his private vehicle, stopped to render aid and assist a motorist.
Cohen and a second driver, also in law enforcement, moved to the shoulder of the southbound fast lane where they were standing when another vehicle approached the scene.
An initial investigation indicates that the approaching vehicle apparently swerved left to avoid the vehicles in lane one and struck both men.
“Both men were thrown over the jersey wall to the northbound side of I-270, where it appears at least one of them was struck by a northbound vehicle,” Maryland State Police wrote in a release.
Rockville Volunteer Fire Department:
It is with deepest sorrow RVFD announces the death of Lt. Sander Cohen as the result of injuries sustained in a motor vehicle incident on I270 on Friday December 8, 2017. Lt. Cohen, 33, had apparently stopped to assist another motorist when he was struck by another vehicle.
Lt. Cohen joined the RVFD in April 2003. He was an active member who was the shift leader for the Thursday shift. He previously was a member of the Board of Directors. Lt. Cohen was a deputy fire marshal with the Office of the State Fire Marshal, an agency of the Maryland Department of State Police.
Lt. Cohen grew up in Rockville and was a graduate of Winston Churchill High School. He will be sorely missed by his many friends within the fire/rescue and law enforcement communities.
Funeral details are pending.
#BREAKING: Officials identify law enforcement officers killed in Montgomery Co. crash as Deputy Chief Sander Cohen of Md. St. Fire Marshal’s Office and an FBI agent https://t.co/r18Nidvaxj pic.twitter.com/5v95WGrvvo
— 7News DC (@7NewsDC) December 9, 2017
