EATON, Ind. --
Two teens might be held responsible for a firefighter's death following a series of arsons.
The teens were accused of setting 21 fires during a two-hour period last week in the small community of Eaton, 6News' Ericka Flye reported.
John Tatman's prized motor home was charred beyond recognition. A raging fire inside his carport was so intense that it melted garbage cans outside and destroyed a boat nearby.
"It was 3:00 in the morning. Someone was ringing our doorbell -- first we knew that we had a fire," Tatman said.
When he got outside, John saw a man who was running to his aid. Volunteer firefighter Jay Maddy, 41, was first on the scene and immediately went to work.
"He fought this fire, and that was hot and hard," Tatman said.
As Maddy and fellow firefighters were battling the blaze, they started getting calls from all over town of multiple smaller fires.
Firefighters were on the run for several hours, putting out trashcan and vehicle fires -- 21 in all.
Investigators had no doubt that they were dealing with an arsonist, and Maddy was busy trying to keep up. Several hours after his duties were done, Maddy suffered a heart attack.
"He went in the hospital at 11:00 on Friday night with chest pain and he passed away early Saturday morning," said Tim Baty, Hamilton Township fire chief.
Maddy had been an Eaton firefighter for 20 years. His peers will miss his dedication.
"It's really rough," said Amber Trammell, and Eaton EMS officer. "Any time anything came in, he'd do his best to get up here and make the run."
Two teens, ages 17 and 18, were arrested in the arson spree -- fires that caused a lot of stress and, now, a lot of heartache.
"You don't ever know if he wouldn't have made those fire runs, if he'd still be here today," Baty said.
Officials want charges against the teens to be upgraded in light of Maddy's death. His funeral was set for Friday at noon at Delta High School in Muncie. He will be buried with fallen firefighter honors.
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