Colleagues remember veteran firefighter killed in NW Harris County wreck

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- "We're all hurting right now." Those five words from Cy-Fair Volunteer Fire Department's Robert Rasa don't begin to describe the grief the department endures.

"I was live updating about this incident and didn't know it was him," said Ravi Maini with the Cy-Fair Vol. Fire Department.

Assistant Chief Mark Braswell, who was also a captain with the Houston Fire Department, died in a freak accident Friday afternoon. Investigators say he was riding his bicycle on North Bridgeland Lake Parkway near Bridge Cove in northwest Harris County when he slammed into the rear of a landscaping trailer. He was severely injured and flown by LifeFlight to Memorial Hermann Hospital, where he later died.

Rasa says Braswell was a triathlete who often rode as a way to reduce stress.

"Just a great person, a great friend. I never really thought of him as a boss," Rasa said.

Investigators still have not publicly explained what caused the incident.

Braswell joined the Cy-Fair Volunteer Fire Department in 1988. He also spent more than 20 years with HFD. He is remembered as a devoted husband and father.

Funeral arrangements are still being made.