| 'Born fireman' wanted to be part of the action |
| By Joan Giangrasse Kate. |
| Special to the Tribune. |
| Even as he rose through the ranks, Louis A. "Bud" Miehle remained the kind of firefighter who would rather enter a burning building than give orders from the sidelines. |
| A member of the Chicago Fire Department for more than three decades, Mr. Miehle served from the 1940s through the '70s and assisted in many of the city's worst fires. |
| "Bud was a bom fireman, a Johnny-on-the-spot kind of guy, who went where the action was despite the danger to his own life," said Helen, his wife of 59 years. "He was motivated by a strong desire to help people, and in his line of work that sometimes meant saving their lives.". |
| Mr. Miehle, 87, of Lake Zurich, formerly of Chicago and Lake Placid, Fla., a retired deputy chief fire marshal for the Chicago department, died Tuesday May 27, in Lexington Healthcare Center in Wheeling after a heart attack. |
| "Bud could be hard-nosed and blunt, but he always had the respect of his crew," his wife said. "One of the hardest things for him was to have to stand by and direct a fire, when what he really wanted to do was to be right in there fighting it.". |
| Born in Chicago, Mr. Miehle worked for several years in the steel mills of Gary before joining the Chicago Fire Department in 1943. He became a lieutenant soon after and was stationed out of Loop and North Side firehouses for the rest of his career. |
| In 1958, Mr. Miehle was on the scene of the fire that destroyed the Our Lady of the Angels elementary school on the city's West Side, taking the lives of 92 children and three nuns. |
| "Bud wasn't one to show his emotions, but when he came home and told me about that fire, he just broke down and cried," his wife said. "He and the other firemen felt helpless, watching children scramble for their lives and jumping out of windows. He said he left a part of his heart there that day". |
| Mr. Miehle, who won numerous awards for his service, retired in 1979 with the rank of deputy chief fire marshal. In 1985 he moved with his wife to Lake Placid, Fla., and in 2001 the couple moved to Lake Zurich. |
| Other survivors include a daughter, Kathleen; a sister, Marge; three grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. |
| A memorial mass will be held at 10 a.m. Monday in St. Edna Catholic Church, 2525 N. Arlington Heights Rd., Arlington Heights. |
