Houston firefighter dead in warehouse blaze on east side
A Houston firefighter died Thursday morning from injuries sustained fighting a warehouse fire near the Greater East End, according to Houston Fire Department officials.
The firefighter was identified as Marcelo Garcia with station 23/B. The 42-year-old was with the department for 10 years. According to the department, two firefighters were transported to Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center. Another person injured in the blaze had minor injuries and is expected to make a full recovery.
Fire Chief Thomas Muñoz, accompanied by Houston Mayor John Whitmire, gave an emotional public briefing at a media conference on the incident.
"Unfortunately, one of our brothers, firefighter Marcelo Garcia, passed away," Muñoz said with tears in his eyes. "What we ask the city of Houston is, please keep (the) Garcia family in your prayers. Keep our peace and fire department in your prayers as we mourn our brother."
Muñoz said the incident is still under review, but a preliminary investigation determined Garcia sustained critical injuries after a wall collapsed on him. He added that the department is offering counseling services to its firefighters and their families.
Whitmire said several firefighters pulled Garcia from the wreckage, but were not able to save him.
"We lost such a fine firefighter in Garcia, and we're not going to forget him, but we have to remember the people that took him out of that scene," Whitmire said. "They'll never be the same because they pulled a brother, a family member, out from underneath that fallen wall. He didn't make it. They did. They're with us tonight, and that's what I want Houstonians to understand and pray for the survivors, because they're injured as well."
The fire, which was still listed as active at around 5 a.m. Thursday morning, broke out at a warehouse near the 6600 block of Polk Street at around 11 p.m. Wednesday evening, according to the department's active incident tracker . Footage captured of the scene by OnScene TV showed dozens of firefighters on foot and mounted atop ladders working to contain the blaze. The warehouse is owned by Jensal Holdings LLC, according to the Harris County Appraisal District's online property tool.
It's the second time in just under three weeks that the fire department has reported a casualty in the line of duty. In late October, a firefighter was hospitalized after falling from a second-story balcony while conducting a search at an apartment fire on Richmond Avenue, according to a fire department post on X.
