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A young firefighter in southeast Texas has died after contracting COVID-19 while responding to numerous emergency medical calls.
The U.S. Fire Administration announced in a release on Tuesday that Orange County Emergency Services District 1 firefighter James Heater, who was only 32 years old, died on Friday of complications related to the virus.
USFA says Heater contracted the deadly virus on or around Aug. 22 and was then hospitalized before eventually being placed on a ventilator.
"He was always fun to have around, he would just brighten the mood whenever he came in," ESD 1 Fire Chief Robert Smith told KFDM News of Heater, who was a devoted husband and father.