A year after deadly library fire, Porterville perseveres through the pain
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PORTERVILLE, Calif. (KFSN) A serious accident review team, or SART for short, will soon release an independent report on last year s deadly Porterville Library Fire.
Its purpose is to provide more information about what happened, and prevent a similar tragedy from happening in the future. There s not a day that goes by that they re not on my mind, Porterville Fire Chief Dave LaPere said. And that goes for my command staff too.
LaPere says he s proud of how his entire staff has shouldered the burden of losing two of their brothers: Captain Raymond Figueroa and firefighter Patrick Jones.
They both touched my life : Porterville firefighter shares memories of Patrick Jones and Raymond Figueroa
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The men rushed into the burning building after it was reported someone was still inside.
That person had actually escaped, but after a Mayday call, Jones and Figueroa were never heard from again.
They were two of the best firefighters Coy Farnsworth ever knew. I feel really fortunate to have met both of them because I feel like they both touched my life in such positive but different ways, Farnsworth said.
He said Ray was skilled with tools, highly trained, and a mentor to younger firefighters like Patrick-who was eager to learn, always willing to lend a hand, and loved busting down doors (when he wasn t saving kittens).