Fallen Road Ranger is considered a ‘rare breed’

ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. — A Florida Department of Transportation Road Ranger who died while helping a driver over the weekend was honored Thursday.

Family identified the victim as Terry Blum, 67, who was working on Interstate 95 in St. Lucie County on Saturday when he was struck and killed by a vehicle.

Lights flashed and sirens echoed throughout Fort Pierce as a procession paid respects to Blum while his body was carried from the medical examiner’s office to Yates Funeral Home in Fort Pierce.

A few days after the death of her father, Sarah Blum looks back on her life.

“Just a genuine, humble man who loved helping others,” Kaitlin Blum said.

In the neighborhood where the victim lived, friends lamented the loss of the fallen Road Ranger, knowing it would leave a lasting void.

“Emotions are high and I feel a little numb and sad,” said neighbor Michelle Gerard.

Mark Mendenhall remembered Blum as a devoted family man.

“I know they were going to church. I couldn’t believe it when I heard the news,” Mendenhall said.

Terry Blum died Saturday when a Royal Palm Beach man drove off the road, colliding with Blum and his truck while assisting a disabled vehicle.

Everyone WPTV spoke to who knew Terry expressed similar sentiments.

“Terry was a rare breed, a real man,” Gérard remarked.

His neighbor thinks that Terry would want everyone who misses him to find comfort in knowing that he is now at peace with his wife, whom he lost less than a year ago.