Roll of Honor
Incident
Sergeant Steve Van Horn died as the result of leukemia that developed after he responded to a toxic chemical fire on February 22nd, 1987. The fire broke out at the Hixson Metal Finishing Company plant at 829 Production Place. The fire engulfed a 10,000 square-foot warehouse that stored over 140 different chemicals. Sergeant Van Horn coordinated traffic and evacuation at the scene without protective gear and was exposed to the toxic chemicals. After the fire, Sergeant Van Horn and three firefighters were diagnosed with cancer in January 1995. Sergeant Van Horn passed away from the illness on November 16, 1997. One other firefighter has also passed away. The city of Newport Beach proclaimed his illness and death duty related. Sergeant Van Horn had served with the Newport Police Department for 24 years and previously served with the Yuma Police Department (Arizona).
Survivors
He is survived by his wife and six children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-CA-27B5FC10- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
26 years. You could have gone home.
Sergeant Van Horn gave the Newport Beach Police Department 26 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the Newport Beach community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Sergeant Van Horn.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Sergeant Steven Donald Van Horn is one of 2,974 officers lost to illness connected to their service across the full record of this memorial — 9.1% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In CA, 75 of 1,837 officers were lost to illness connected to their service — 4.1% of this state's fallen. That is 5 percentage points below the national rate of 9.1%.
At Newport Beach Police Department, 1 of 3 officers on record were lost to illness connected to their service — 33.3% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Illness compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Steven Donald Van Horn's cause is highlighted.
How Steven Donald Van Horn Compares
When Illness Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Illness deaths across the full memorial record. Steven Donald Van Horn is highlighted in Nov.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
2 officers from Newport Beach Police Department are honored on badge.nw.
