A body found hanging from a bridge in central Omaha has been identified as that of Ralston Volunteer Fire Department Chief Kyle Ienn.
Omaha Police discovered Ienn's body shortly after 7:30 a.m. Tuesday morning on a pedestrian bridge near 69th and Pine streets, near the campus of the College of St. Mary.
Police are investigating the death as a suicide.
Ienn was 40.
“It's a really sad day for our community,” Ralston Mayor Don Groesser said. “We've lost a dear friend, we've lost our fire chief. The city is just suffering a tremendous loss right now.”
Ienn managed the Ace Hardware Store near 55th and Center Streets in Omaha, in addition to overseeing Ralston's fire department. He and wife, Christine, lived in Papillion. He was the father of three children.
Under Ienn's leadership, the ranks of volunteers on the Ralston fire department grew to an all-time high - 56 members at the end of 2011.
After a spate of smoking-related fires in Ralston, La Vista and Omaha, Ienn, 40, became spokesperson for RentSmokeFree.org, and was featured in a televised public service announcement asking landlords and renters to demand smoke-free housing in the metro area.
He was recognized nationally as an advocate and expert on fireworks safety.
Ienn also was instrumental in helping promote his department's honor guard, which for the last several years has participated in National Fallen Firefighters ceremonies in Maryland.
“Kyle always had something to say,” Groesser said. “And he was always working for the fire service and taking that out to our community and the nation.”
Mike Bolte, a retired volunteer firefighter who served with Ienn and is part of the department's honor guard, said the chief's vision was unparalleled.
“Kyle sees the big picture, way beyond Ralston,” Bolte said Tuesday. “From his work with the National Fallen Firefighters to what he's done with fireworks safety, he saw things in a way bigger world.
“And he was a volunteer. That's what was most special about Kyle. He did all this and it wasn't even something he was paid to do.”
Tom Negley, Ralston's former fire chief, said Ienn was “a Ralston boy” through and through.
Ienn worked for the Ralston Parks Department in the 1980s before signing on with the fire department shortly after his 1989 graduation from Ralston High School.
“Kyle has taken this department to a completely different level,” Negley said. “I was thrilled when Kyle said he'd take the job as chief because I knew he'd do an excellent job.”
Negley said Ralston assistant fire chief Joe Eischeid will take over administrative and day-to-day operations of the department.
“It's going to be tough,” Eischeid said. “We train so that we know what to expect in a situation, but a lot of guys in there just don't know what to say about this."
Ienn's wife serves as administrative assistant for the fire department. Dozens of Ralston firefighters gathered at the couple's home as word spread of Ienn's death.
In addition to his wife and children, Ienn is survived by his mother, Dianne Ienn of Ralston and two brothers.
Funeral arrangements were pending Tuesday afternoon.
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