Christopher Roy was 36 and leaves a 9-year-old daughter.<\/b>
\nWORCESTER, Mass. \u2014 A Massachusetts firefighter rescued from a fast-moving blaze in an apartment building before dawn Sunday was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead, officials said.
Christopher Roy, 36, was a 2 1\/2-year veteran of the Worcester Fire Department and leaves behind a 9-year-old daughter and other family members, Worcester Fire Chief Michael Lavoie said.
The fire in the six-unit building was reported at about 4 a.m. There were no reports of injuries to tenants. Another firefighter was also taken to the hospital but was later released.
Roy\u2019s death comes days after Worcester marked 19 years since six city firefighters were killed battling a warehouse fire on Dec. 3,1999. Another Worcester firefighter died in the line of duty on Dec. 8,2011.
\u201cThis is a difficult day for the Worcester Fire Department and particularly painful as this is the week we remember and mourn the passing of Worcester firefighter Jon Davies and the six who perished in the Cold Storage Warehouse fire,\u201d Lavoie said during a news conference Sunday at fire headquarters.
The fire appears to have started in the basement, but \u201cconditions deteriorated rapidly,\u201d the chief said.
Roy, a Shrewsbury resident, was among five firefighters trapped on the second floor.
\u201cWith the assistance of other crews and the rapid intervention team, five firefighters escaped over ladders. Two firefighters were transported to the local hospital,\u201d Lavoie said.
City Manager Edward Augustus Jr. called Roy\u2019s death an \u201cunimaginably devastating loss.\u201d
The loss is \u201cespecially gut wrenching\u201d given the timing, he said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation with assistance from the state Fire Marshal\u2019s office.
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