WASHINGTON (WUSA9) -- D.C. firefighter Lt. Kevin McRae died from injuries he received at an apartment building fire on 7th Street NW in D.C. Wednesday morning. He is the second firefighter in his family to die in the line of duty.
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said at a press conference that Lt. Kevin McRae made it out of the apartment building safely but collapsed. CPR was performed on Lt. McRae before he was taken to MedStar Washington Hospital Center.
She called Lt. McRae a hero at the press conference with Acting DC Fire and EMS Chief at Medstar Gregory Dean at Washington Hospital Center. He served with the department for more than 20 years. He is the 100th D.C. firefighter to perish in the line of duty, according to Bowser.
At the same conference she said that McRae's cousin James McRae also died while working for D.C. Fire and Rescue Services in 2007. He was 34 years old and passed away after suffering a heart attack, according to his profile from the National Fallen Firefighters Association.
MedStar officials say they used every resource to try to save Lt. Kevin McRae's life.
The mayor says she met with McRae's family members and the Engine 6 fire crew, who are devastated by the news.
The principal of Dunbar High School visited the station with some students following the press conference. He told us McRae's son was a senior at Dunbar and at school when he got the news.
The fire was located in the 1300 block of 7th St NW, according to DC Fire and EMS. Fire showed from the top floor of the 9-story apartment building, according to DC Fire Fighters Local 36 on Twitter. Another firefighter and two other people suffered non-life threatening injuries, according to DC Fire and EMS officials.
Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services officials say it provided mutual aid at the scene.
Red Cross volunteers are helping residents displaced by the fire.
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