The Chicago Fire Department was mourning the loss of one of its own Tuesday after a 49-year-old veteran of the department was killed during a blaze on the city's South Side.
Jermaine Pelt died after an extra-alarm blaze spread to multiple buildings in the city's West Pullman neighborhood early Tuesday morning. Two other firefighters were also injured.
Pelt, a father of two who recently celebrated his 49th birthday, had been a member of the department since 2005 and worked in the city's Roseland community for his entire career, according to CFD Commissioner Annette Nance-Holt.
"He just walked his daughter down the aisle for her wedding and she's on a honeymoon right now," Nance-Holt said through tears.
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A procession escorted Pelt's body from Christ Hospital to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office Tuesday morning as the city and the department honored his service.
The blaze started around 3:30 a.m. in the 12000 block of South Wallace Street, according to fire officials. It then spread to two other buildings.
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Pelt was manning a hose in one of the burning buildings when "conditions worsened," authorities said. All firefighters were ordered out of the building, but Pelt "went down" just as that order was being issued.
He was "quickly found" near the hose line by his lieutenant - who was also hospitalized but is in good condition - and brought out for treatment, Nance-Holt said.
"Despite our best efforts - our firefighters and paramedics, they worked feverishly on Jermaine doing CPR all the way from the scene to Christ Hospital - he passed away," she said.
Pelt's death is under investigation.
"This is a huge loss to us as a family," Nance-Holt said. "Jermaine is our family. And when we lose one of our members, it takes a toll on us. People just don't know what firefighters and paramedics go through daily when they respond to these calls, not knowing if they'll come home the next and this is what we saw today."
