SODUS, N.Y. — Cheektowaga firefighters are in mourning after their assistant chief was killed in a crash between two motorcycles.

Members of the South Line Fire District confirm Michael Altenburg died in Wayne County Sunday afternoon.

Sheriff's deputies say around 5 p.m., Altenburg was riding on State Route 104 near Pratt Road in the town of Sodus.

They say Altenburg lost control of his motorcycle trying to stop for traffic.

He was thrown from the bike and his body collided with a second motorcycle.

His passenger, a 48-year-old Cheektowaga woman, was also thrown onto the roadway. She was flown to Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester.

Altenburg died at the scene. South Line Fire says he served as a firefighter for more than 20 years and as an assistant fire chief for almost five years.