The staff of Fire Engineering and FDIC International mourn the loss of James “Jim” Hix of Hix Wrecker Service in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Hix was a longtime supporter of the fire service in the Indianapolis area as well as FDIC International. Over the years, Hix Wrecker Service provided cars, expertise, and space for firefighters to study and practice extrication skills.
“James Hix was a huge supporter of FDIC and training firefighters in general,” said Bobby Halton, Fire Engineering editor in chief and FDIC International education director. “He was a warm and generous man and never asked us for anything in return for all the favors he did for us.”
Jim Hix passed away last week as he was coming home from being in the hospital with pneumonia, according to a post from grandson James Neal on social media.
Born in 1931, Hix came to Indiana from Tennessee in 1948, working for a variety of companies, according to his obituary. He purchased a tow truck and eventually went into the wrecking business full time, ultimately building the largest wrecker service in the Midwest during the ’70s and ’80s.
Hix worked for Indianapolis Motor Speedway for many years, working the Indy 500, the Brickyard 400, Formula One and Raceway Park. He was a special deputy for the Marion County Sheriff’s Department, Beech Grove Department, Johnson County Sheriff’s Department, and the Perry Township Constable’s Office.
Our thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones and the many lives he touched during the course of his life.
