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Lieutenant

Francis William Wilt Jr.

Pennsylvania Department of Corrections — Mechanicsburg, PA

Veteran → Cardiac

End of Watch May 20, 1980

Age 48

Tour of Duty 19 yrs

The Vigil Panel 122 ›

Gender Male

Incident Service The Sacrifice Military Department 17

Incident

Lieutenant Bill Wilt suffered a fatal heart attack while rescuing a family from a burning house at 5:45 AM. Lieutenant Wilt was en route to begin the 6:00 AM shift at the Western Penitentiary in the Woods Run section of Pittsburgh when he noticed a house on fire on the city's Northside at 400 Chautauqa Street.

Upon seeing the fire, he immediately exited his vehicle, activated a nearby fire alarm, and then entered the home. He awoke and evacuated the five family members from the home. As he carried the last child out of the home he collapsed on the front steps.

Lieutenant Wilt had served with the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections for 19 years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife and eight children.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier: BO-US-PA-C306BD63
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Added to badge.nw: August 2, 2026
Last updated: August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Also honored at salute.nw — U.S. Army. One record, 2 gates. Francis is one person.

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Tributes

I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Lieutenant Wilt gave the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections 19 years.
Thank you for your service to the people of Pennsylvania. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Lieutenant Wilt.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Department Pennsylvania Department of Corrections

Type Corrections

Location Mechanicsburg, PA

Platform Identity pdcorr.cumberland.pa.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch May 20, 1980

Tour of Duty 19 yrs

Age 48

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Cardiac

Military Service

Francis William Wilt Jr. served in the U.S. Army (1949â1952) before joining law enforcement.

View full service record on salute.nw →

Lieutenant Francis William Wilt Jr. is one of 1 officers lost to cardiac events in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In PA, 118 of 1,261 officers were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 9.4% of this state's fallen. That is 9.4 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, 2 of 18 officers on record were lost to cardiac events in the line of duty — 11.1% of this agency's fallen.

Pennsylvania Department of Corrections

of 18 officers

11.1% Cardiac

PA — Statewide

118

of 1,261 officers

9.4% Cardiac

Nationwide

of 97,772 officers

0% Cardiac