Virginia honors Virginia Beach firefighter who lost his life to cancer
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — For years, firefighter Matthew Gallina was exposed to the toxins from fires, both small and large, that put him at risk for a host of rare and deadly cancers.
First responders from across the region rushed to the Mayfair Mews Apartment complex in Virginia Beach on April 6, 2012, when a fighter jet slammed into the buildings. The fire was dubbed the Good Friday miracle; no one died.
'Good Friday Miracle': F-18 jet crash into Virginia Beach apartment turns 10
Since Gallina was part of the arson squad, he wasn't assigned to the scene but had to dig through the scene after the incident.
'So if there is an arson, investigation, then my Matt would go out and dig through that scene, and there's a multitude of cancer causing agents,' Gallina's wife Michelle Gallina said.
Michelle also said her husband shared space with gear that was contaminated at Mayflower Mews.
'He did not go to the Good Friday plane crash,' Michelle said. 'His, the gear from the Good Friday plane crash was stored at his station, so that's, that's one part of, of the situation was, all of the turnout gear, the equipment that came back to his station for decon, but, you know, there is there's information that, the turnout gear itself, has cancer causing, material.'
In June of 2023, Gallina, who had no symptoms, tested for a wide variety of cancers. The test came back positive for stage four esophageal cancer — Gallina died just 14 months later. Funeral services were held at Norfolk's Harbor Park.
10 On Your Side's Regina Mobley asked Michelle what her reaction would be if one of her three children wanted to be a firefighter.
'That's a hard question. And, I don't know,' Michelle said. 'I'm hoping that, you know, the camaraderie of the fire department is is so amazing, and it's, it brings you in. The support that I've gotten from the fire department, from the union, from friends and family, has been overwhelming.
On Saturday, Virginia will honor Matt Gallina and 11 other first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to the commonwealth. The event takes place at noon at the Richmond International Raceway Complex. If you can't make it to Richmond, the event will be streamed live at the link here.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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