By Doug Saunders
The San Bernardino County Sun
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — Fire officials notified firefighters Friday that one of their own perished in an accident Thursday while on vacation at Lake Powell.
Engineer John Ruppert died after being electrocuted while repairing a houseboat on Lake Powell, Utah with his family.
He was 35.
“One of my greatest fears has been notifying you all of a tragic event involving one of our fire family members,” Chief Tom Hannemann said in a prepared statement to firefighters. “The details are still developing, but this is what I know as of now. Engineer John Ruppert was electrocuted yesterday (Thursday) on Lake Powell while attempting to repair the house boat he and his family were vacationing on. John succumbed to his injuries.”
A team of Ruppert’s coworkers are traveling to Utah to bring their fallen comrade home.
Ruppert is survived by his wife Kristen and their two children.
Funeral arrangements will be announced at a later date.
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(c)2016 the San Bernardino County Sun (San Bernardino, Calif.)