Firefighter dies after battling early morning fire
By Jay Kenney, Evan Sobol and Dylan Fearon
Click here for updates on this story
NORTH HAVEN, Connecticut (WFSB) — A firefighter succumbed to his injuries after a fire in North Haven Monday morning.
Officials say North Haven fire companies were dispatched to calls for a building fire at 27 Quinnipiac Avenue around 1 a.m.
Firefighters saw heavy smoke coming from the back of the multi-family home when they arrived, officials said.
While firefighters battled the blaze, a “Mayday” was called for a firefighter who was down, fire officials said.
The firefighter was transported to the hospital a short time later, where he was later pronounced deceased.
The North Haven Fire Department identified the fallen firefighter as Matthias Wirtz.
Wirtz, 46, was a 22-year veteran of the department, fire officials said.
The fire department said Wirtz started as a volunteer firefighter in North Haven in 1996. He graduated from Notre Dame High School in West Haven.
Wirtz received several letters of commendation and responded to the September 11 attacks in New York City, fire officials said.
“The North Haven Fire Department wants to thank our neighboring departments for the outpouring of support during this difficult time as well as fire station coverage,” the department said.
There were no other injuries reported, the fire department said.
Fire officials said 13 people are displaced. The Red Cross is assisting.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.
