Springville Fire Chief Phil Whitney was found dead at his Springville home on Wednesday at about 11 a.m. He was 73.

Whitney had checked in at work at about 8 a.m. Wednesday saying that he had felt ill the previous night. Whitney had responded to a fire scene Tuesday evening.

"Whoever comes along has some huge shoes to fill," said Alan Duke, a full-time firefighter with the Springville Fire Department. "We won't understand for a while how much he did for this community."

Much of the fire department is made up of volunteers trained by Whitney -- widely known as "Fireman Phil."

"He's run a volunteer department that I think is first class," said Mayor Gene Mangum.

Whitney joined the Springville Fire Department in 1977 as a volunteer, according to Springville police Lt. Dave Caron. He was later promoted to fire chief -- and was the first (and only) full-time chief for the department -- in 1985.

Whitney recently oversaw completion of Springville's new fire station located at approximately 75 W. Center St.

"He was a grand old gentleman," Mangum said.

He was also renowned for his technical capability and trust he instilled in the city, said former mayor and longtime friend Ernest Boyer. The two went to high school at the same time and enlisted in the 116th Engineering Company with the Army National Guard when it was formed in 1961.

"I don't ever remember a disparaging comment about the fire department or things the fire department was doing," Boyer said. "It's unusual not to hear anything critical about people, especially when they have a role in the city."

• Reporters Virginia Petersen, Christi C. Babbitt and Joe Pyrah contributed to this story.

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