COLUMBUS, Ohio — He was a father, a son, a husband and a hero. Wyandot County Sheriff Deputy Daniel Kin meant so much to so many people.
He started with the department last October. In tributes shared to social media, many people called him a hero. Nathan Frasure calls him a friend.
"I think you run out of words to describe somebody that good that has moved on at an early age in life,” Frasure said. “Very fortunate to have somebody to cross paths with like that in my life.”
Deputy Kin and Frasure met in 2008 at the police academy. They’d later go on to work at the Seneca County Sheriff’s Department.
Frasure told 10TV, Kin was someone you could count on and was always level-headed in any situation.
"Just an easy-going country guy. Just an easy personality, never overwhelmed by the moment,” said Frasure.
Kin died on Thursday from his injuries after a crash in Pickaway County.
The Pickaway County Sheriff’s Department said the crash happened just after 11 a.m.
A man driving a 2010 Dodge Ram was traveling eastbound on Route 56. At the same time, Deputy Kin was driving north on Route 104 with an inmate in the vehicle.
The two vehicles collided at the intersection of Routes 56 and 104, just west of Circleville.
Deputy Kin was flown to Grant Medical Center in Columbus where he died from his injuries.
The man driving the Dodge Ram was also taken to Grant Medical Center and he is expected to be OK. A 4-year-old girl, a passenger in the truck, was taken to Nationwide Children's Hospital. The sheriff's office did not say what her condition was.
The inmate in the deputy's van was taken to OhioHealth Berger Hospital and is still in custody.
Hours later, dozens of police officers, deputies, EMS and healthcare workers gathered in downtown Columbus to escort Deputy Kin home.
"In the darkest moments, you have to understand that sometimes God needs warriors and heroes...God got a good one today,” Frasure said.