Ex-FF Dies Saving Fiancée, Boys from NY Apartment Fire

A former New York firefighter died after saving his fiancée and four boys from a burning apartment over the weekend.

The fire broke out in the Oneonta building just before 4:30 a.m. Saturday, The Associated Press reports. John Heller, 38, was able to pull his fiancée and the boys — three of whom were Heller's nephews and had been staying overnight — but wasn't able to make it out of the fire himself.

Oneonta Fire Department officials told the AP that Heller had been a part-time firefighter between October 2003 and August 2009. The cause of death has not been determined.

Investigators are looking into the cause of the blaze.