Dylan EubankFirefighters from multiple agencies across Utah volunteered their time Tuesday to line up along Interstate 15 and pay their respects to a Provo fire captain and his four family members killed in a recent Utah flash flood.
Provo Fire Capt. Spencer Long, wife Katrina Long and the couple’s three sons — Reid Vernon, Thayne Long and Gage Long — were all killed after the family went hiking and canyoneering in an area outside the small Utah town of Bicknell, in Wayne County, around 11:30 a.m. Friday.
“At this time, it is believed the family fell victim to flooding caused by heavy rains,” the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office reported in a Saturday news release.
At around 5 p.m. Friday, the body of one of the boys was found first, in a wash near the Sunglow campground area. The four others were found dead by about 12:15 p.m. Saturday.
Lydia Vernon, a daughter, survives her family; she was not with them when they went hiking in Wayne County.
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Bluffdale firefighters stand on a firetruck on the Bangerter Highway overpass along Interstate 15 in Draper on Tuesday, July 21, 2026 watching the procession transporting the bodies of Provo Fire Capt. Spencer Long, his wife, Katrina, and their three sons, who all died in a flash flood near a Wayne County campground on Friday, to a funeral home in Spanish Fork.
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Draper firefighters stand on the Bangerter Highway overpass along Interstate 15 in Draper on Tuesday, July 21, 2026 waiting for the procession transporting the bodies of Provo Fire Capt. Spencer Long, his wife, Katrina, and their three sons, who all died in a flash flood near a Wayne County campground on Friday, to a funeral home in Spanish Fork.
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Emergency vehicles drive in a procession along Interstate 15 in Draper on Tuesday, July 21, 2026 as the bodies of Provo Fire Capt. Spencer Long, his wife, Katrina, and their three sons, who all died in a flash flood near a Wayne County campground on Friday, are taken to a funeral home in Spanish Fork.
A GoFundMe campaign that a family friend established to help raise money for the daughter’s immediate needs, including “funeral and memorial expenses, housing, counseling, daily living costs, education, and other expenses,” had raised more than $270,000 as of Tuesday afternoon.
The bodies of the five family members were escorted from the state medical examiner’s office in Taylorsville at about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday before they were taken south down I-15 to a mortuary in Spanish Fork. Provo Fire and Rescue crews led the procession.
Along the route, firefighters from across the state lined up on overpasses, paying their respects to Long and his loved ones as the procession passed below.
Lorie Nilson, who attended the procession, called the family members’ deaths tragic, especially since her own husband served as a firefighter for 21 years.
“It’s just so sad and shocking,” Nilson said. “It’s crazy how fast things can change as you’re out and about.”
Provo Fire and Rescue shared in a statement Saturday that the agency was “absolutely heartbroken by the death of Captain Spencer Long and his family.”
“Long was beloved,” said Barb Smith, a spokesperson with the city of Provo.
He had been with the Provo fire agency for 17 years, serving as a captain for the last two, according to Provo Fire Chief Jeremy Headman.
“The fact that he is gone and his family is gone, minus Lydia, is very challenging for everyone here,” Smith said.
(Provo Fire and Rescue) Capt. Spencer Long, who was killed along with four of his family members in flash flood outside of Bicknell, Utah, on Friday, July 17, 2026.
Headman called Spencer Long an “amazing firefighter” and “great paramedic” with a diverse set of skills who often raised his hand to help. He was a member of Utah Task Force One, which is a federal search and rescue team, and a member of Provo Fire’s mountain rescue team.
The agency will be “at a loss” without him, Headman said.
“The thing that stands out the most about Capt. Long was his love for his family,” the chief said during a Tuesday news conference. “He spent an enormous amount of time out in the outdoors with his boys.”
Since the family members’ deaths were announced, Provo Fire and Rescue has heard from neighboring towns, other fire departments and Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, Headman said.
The family’s surviving daughter was met by what Headman described as an outpouring of love when she arrived at the family’s home this weekend. Friends, firefighters and members of hockey teams that the family members were a part of lined the neighborhood’s streets to receive her, he said.
