MUNSTER, Ind. — A firefighter suffered a fatal heart attack Saturday after returning home from responding to a car crash.
NWITimes reported that Munster Fire Chief James Knesek, 59, had been the chief since 2005.
“He was a large part of the success in Munster,” Town Manager Tom DeGiulio said in a statement. “We have not only lost a longtime employee, but a friend.”
Chief Knesek became Munster’s director of operations in 1995 and was a 34-year veteran, according to the report.
DeGiulio said Knesek “enjoyed leading the fire department and public works.”
Visitations will be held Wednesday; the funeral, with full honors, will be Thursday.