PEACH BOTTOM, Pa. — A volunteer firefighter died Friday after becoming ill at home when her pager went off for a response call to a residential structure fire.
Christi Rodgers, 26, with the Robert Fulton Fire Company, had woken up with difficulty breathing after her pager alerted her to a house fire at 4:53 a.m., according to the Lancaster Online.
Firefighter Rodgers, a 10-year veteran, immediately went into cardiac arrest and was transported to a hospital where she was pronounced dead.
She and her husband James, also a firefighter, just gave birth to her son, Conner, a month ago, according to the report.
"(She was) always very bubbly, very happy, loved her jobs, loved her new baby and loved being married,” Assistant Chief Dan Appel said. “Most of the time we just sat around and talked and joked with each other. She was like a sister. She always loved to carry on and give you a hard time in that sisterly way.”
Fifty firefighters from multiple counties fought the house fire, which took nearly two hours to control.
No one was inside the home at the time and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
A funeral service will be held at Wesley United Methodist Church, 1104 Kirkwood Pike, Quarryville, Pa. on Thursday, Oct. 30 at 11:00 a.m. The burial will be in Pleasant Grove United Methodist Cemetery, Peach Bottom, Pa.
Visitations will be held Wednesday, Oct. 29 at the Worship Center, 2384 New Holland Pike, Lancaster, Pa. from 6-8:00 p.m. and at Wesley United Methodist Church on Thursday from 9-11:00 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are requested to the Conner P. Rodgers Benefit Fund, c/o any Fulton Bank branch. Arrangements entrusted to Reynolds Funeral and Cremation Services, Inc., 144 East State Street, Quarryville, Pa.