AUSTINTOWN, Ohio — Twenty-four year veteran firefighter John Fritz, 48, died sometime Monday morning in his bunk at Austintown Fire Station 1.
Multiple news outlets report that firefighters went to check on Fritz when he didn’t respond to an early-morning alarm near the end of his 24-hour shift. Firefighters found him unresponsive in his bed; the crew on duty and others began lifesaving efforts.
The cause of death has not been determined.
“It is a huge loss, not only to the department, but to the community of Austintown,” Austintown Trustee Jim Davis told the Tribune Chronicle. “He embodied the true meaning of firefighter, practicing everyday to be the best fireman he could be, and striving to make sure everybody else around him was too.”
Fritz began his career as a part-time firefighter in 1992 and moved to a full-time position in 2000. Fritz was an instructor for the department at a local technical center.
He leaves behind a wife and five children. A GoFundMe page has been set up to help his family with funeral costs; funeral arrangements are pending.