Los Angeles fire captain dies after collapsing on duty
A Los Angeles city firefighter who collapsed Monday while on duty in a communications center has died, a department official said.
LAFD Capt. Matthew G. McKnight, 51, was found unresponsive inside the downtown communications center about 1 a.m., according to a post on the LAFD blog by department spokesman Brian Humphrey.
McKnight, a 31-year veteran of the department, was nearing the end of a five-hour shift supervising dispatchers when he collapsed, Humphrey said.
“Despite an exhaustive effort by colleagues who immediately performed CPR, applied a defibrillator and instituted advanced life-support measures, Captain McKnight proved beyond medical help and was declared dead Monday morning at the Los Angeles County/USC Medical Center,” Humphrey said.
McKnight, who lived in Thousand Oaks, is survived by his wife, daughter, son and two brothers, who also work for the L.A. Fire Department.
The Fire Department published a statement on the blog, saying members of the department “remain deeply appreciative of the kindness and support of so many at this difficult time.”
A cause of death had not yet been determined, a Los Angeles County coroner’s official said.
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