George W. Smith, a former Butler fire chief, city council member and instructor for the Butler County Community College fire training program, died Friday morning at VA Butler Healthcare.

Smith, 73, of Butler Township served 25 years as a Butler firefighter, joining the department in 1964. He became chief in 1981, retiring in 1988.

He also was a Butler city councilman from 1990 to 1994.

For 15 years he was an instructor of fire training at BC3, retiring in 2002. He also served as the Butler Township fire marshal for four years.

Mr. Smith was a senior fire instructor for the Pennsylvania State Fire Academy, and he was a fire fighting and hazardous materials instructor throughout Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio from 1969 to 1987.