MS Firefighter Dies 12 Days after Cancer Diagnosis

A Mississippi Fire Department on the Gulf is in mourning after one of its own succumbed to a rare and aggressive cancer shortly after being diagnosed.

The Pascagoula Fire Department announced on social media that firefighter Jacob Latch, a 16-year veteran of the department, had passed away Tuesday after being diagnosed with epithelioid hemangioendothelioma (EHE) less than two weeks earlier. He was 39.

The department had said in a previous Facebook post announcing Latch's diagnosis that it was "in shock" and that the cancer had "spread aggressively."

According to WLOX News, Latch had visited a doctor for several months complaining of back pain before the EHE diagnosis came on Sept. 30. The cancer had begun to attack his spine, and despite efforts to remove the affected area, it quickly spread to his lungs and then his bones.

"It’s not easy," Pascagoula Battalion Chief Scott Andrews told WLOX. "Jacob was more than just a coworker, more than just an employee here at this fire department. He was a brother. He was a standup guy."

In addition to serving the Pascagoula community for over 15 years, Latch also volunteered as a squad member with Tunnel to Towers-Biloxi.

He leaves behind his wife, two daughters and a son.