Veteran firefighter killed while trying to rescue colleague from warehouse fire

ATLANTA (WANF/Gray News) - Officials say a veteran firefighter from Georgia died in the line of duty after getting trapped in a burning warehouse while trying to rescue a fellow firefighter.

DeKalb County fire officials say 53-year-old Master Firefighter Preston Fant, who was with DeKalb County Fire Rescue for 21 years, died Monday from injuries sustained in a commercial structure fire.

Fant was among the 32 firefighters who responded to a Lithonia warehouse around 1:30 p.m. Monday. During the operation, he got trapped while trying to rescue a fellow firefighter. He was pulled from the building by his coworkers, who also began first aid at the scene. Fant was rushed to the hospital, where he died, officials say.

“We lost an elite firefighter and a brother. I ask you to keep his wife and five children and his entire family, as well as the DeKalb County Fire Rescue family, in your prayers and thoughts,” said DeKalb County Fire Chief Darnell Fullum.

DeKalb County officials shared their heartbreak over the loss during a Tuesday news conference.

“He was a great firefighter. He was a great family man,” Fullum said, holding back tears. “Interestingly enough, where I normally saw him was at a fire scene, and after the incident was over, he would ask me about my son. And that demonstrated who he was.”

Fullum said Fant served at Fire Station 24 in Stone Mountain and was trained in swift water, high-rise and trench rescue. He was deeply respected and a father figure to many.

DeKalb County CEO Lorraine Cochran-Johnson also took the podium, assuring the Fant family they aren’t alone.

“DeKalb County stands with you. We will walk beside you. We will support you in each and every way possible,” she said. “We will also continue providing grief support for our team. It is very difficult to lose an individual with whom you serve, so today as a county, we mourn.”

She added that Fant ran towards danger when so many others run away.

“He had the courage to do what is required,” she said.

A GoFundMe has been set up to help Fant’s family. Details surrounding Fant’s funeral and memorial plans have not been released at this time. All flags in the county have been lowered to half-staff.

The investigation into the cause of the fire in Lithonia remains ongoing. A large number of investigators were back out at the scene Tuesday morning, trying to piece together what happened.

Fant is the first DeKalb County firefighter to die in the line of duty while battling a fire, officials say.

Cochran-Johnson noted this is the second time in 30 days she has stood before the media to announce the death of a first responder. DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose was killed in a shooting last month outside the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters.

Cochran-Johnson urged the public to shine a light on the dedication and danger first responders place on themselves every day in the service of their communities.