MUNCIE, IN — Tributes to Blake Reynolds continued to pour in on Thursday, Nov. 13, a day after the 31-year-old Delaware County sheriff’s deputy lost his life in a traffic accident on Interstate 69.
Many law enforcement agencies from across Indiana, and state and local elected officials, issued public statements expressing sorrow over Reynolds’ death and support for the Delaware County Sheriff’s Department.
“The outpouring of support has been overwhelming,” said Jeff Stanley, the department’s chief deputy. “The state (Fraternal Order of Police) has been at the justice center serving meals to staff, and both the state FOP and the Indiana Sheriffs’ Association are assisting with the planning of the funeral services.”
Stanley said both local restaurants and individuals have been “calling nonstop offering to provide meals to staff and the Reynolds family.”
Police agencies from as far away as Porter County in northwestern Indiana have offered to help “cover jail staff and the day of the services,” he said.
The chief deputy said his department had also received “a large number of texts and phone calls from sheriffs, chiefs, and their staff checking on our agency and personnel.”
“The amount of support has been truly remarkable,” Stanley said.
Reynolds’ funeral arrangements had not yet been announced as of Thursday afternoon.
A sheriff’s department vehicle on Thursday was parked in the grass outside the main entrance of the Delaware County Justice Center in tribute to Reynolds. Wreaths, flowers and balloons have been left on and near the vehicle.
A crisis intervention team was at the justice center on Thursday, talking to public safety workers — including deputies and Muncie police, emergency dispatchers and EMS personnel — about this week’s tragedy.
“Right now, the (sheriff’s) department’s primary focus is Corporal Blake Reynolds and his family, making sure they receive the support they need and helping them navigate through this difficult process,” Stanley said.
Investigators said Reynolds, a deputy since 2022, was fatally injured shortly after 4 a.m Wednesday as he helped the driver of a disabled semi along Interstate 69’s northbound lanes near the 247-mile marker.
Another northbound truck crashed into the deputy’s vehicle and the disabled semi.
Indiana State Police are investigating the fatality.
Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Delaware County deputy’s death in the line of duty prompts tributes, offers of help
Reporting by Douglas Walker, Muncie Star Press / Muncie Star Press
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