By Tillie Fong
Rocky Mountain News (Denver)
Copyright 2006 Denver Publishing Company
Denver firefighter Lt. Richard Montoya died from brain damage caused by smoke inhalation, not a heart attack, an autopsy report says.
“There was no indication that he had a heart attack,” Amy Martin, Denver deputy coroner, said Tuesday.
Martin determined that the death was accidental.
“Although the exact mechanism is unclear, investigation revealed the possibility that the decedent’s facemask may have become dislodged enough to result in exposure to smoke in the fire,” Martin wrote in her report.
Montoya, 61, and a 30-year veteran of the Denver Fire Department, died May 21, after he was taken off life-support.
He had collapsed in a second- floor bedroom while his crew rescued a 16-year-old girl from a house fire May 14.
At the time, it was believed that he went into cardiac arrest.
Phil Champagne, spokesman for the Denver Fire Department, said there were no surprises in the autopsy findings.
The department also conducted an internal investigation of the incident and will include some recommendations in a report, expected to be released this week.