A firefighter died while fighting a house fire in Leonardtown, Maryland, on Tuesday, according to authorities.
The firefighter was assigned to Naval Air Station Patuxent River, according to spokesman Patrick Gordon, who called his death a “tremendous tragedy.” The firefighter’s name was not immediately released.
The residents – a man, a woman and their daughter – escaped with their lives, but their two-story home was left in rubble.
Firefighters responded to the fire in the 20500 block of Deer Wood Park Drive around 5:30 am, according to the Mechanicsville Volunteer Fire Department. Several departments responded to the emergency.
The firefighter fell through the first floor and was trapped, according to the fire department. He was located and pronounced dead at the scene.
Firefighters brought the fire under control. Video from our news helicopter shows the ruins of the house in a wooded area.
A loud bang and the smell of smoke
Richard McNeil said he was in shock at the firefighter’s passing and the loss of his home.
“It’s hard to explain how it hurts inside,” he said as he stood near the rubble. “All I have to say is that I am so sorry that this happened. I know it was being his job.”
McNeil had lived in his home since 1996. He said he was still trying to process the day that changed his family’s life.
“Everything we had is gone,” he continued. “My wife and I and our daughter are alive. We narrowly escaped.”
Her daughter woke up in the morning after hearing a loud bang and smelling smoke.
“She came running up to us and said, ‘The house is on fire!’” McNeil said. “I walked into the hallway and I could see the flames inside.”
The three were able to escape and watched from the street as the firefighters tried to save their home.
McNeil and his neighbors believe that lightning may have caused the accident. The investigation is ongoing, according to authorities.
First responders in the region are mourning the death of the firefighter, said Gordon, the spokesman for the Patuxent River Naval Air Station.
“This firefighter gave his life in the line of duty, and he made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of others,” he said.
The Department of Defense is expected to release information on the firefighter’s identity on Wednesday.
Leonardtown, in St. Mary’s County, is about 65 miles southeast of Washington DC.
