SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – A Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District captain has died of complications from COVID-19, the department announced today.
Capt. W. Chris Mertz, a 30-year veteran of the department who responded to the World Trade Center following the 9/11 attacks and Hurricane Katrina in 2005, died Wednesday. He was 54.
“Chris and his family are the epitome of the American ideal people who love their country and committed their lives to serving their fellow citizens,” the department said in a statement.
A husband and father of three who worked early in his career for the Federal Fire Department in San Diego and the U.S. Forest Service, Mertz was an active member of his union and an original member of San Diego Urban Search and Rescue Task Force, which responds to disasters.
RANCHO SANTA FE
Fire officials on Thursday night said a captain who worked 30 years for the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District died from complications of COVID-19.
A statement from the district said Capt. W. Chris Mertz, who died Wednesday, will receive full line-of-duty-death honors.
The 54-year-old was most recently assigned to Station 5 in Harmony Grove Village, according to the district’s statement. He is survived by his wife, Canli, his son, Garrett, who is a firefighter with Cal Fire San Diego, and his two daughters, Natalie and Roxanne, who both serve in the Air Force.
We regret to inform you of the Line of Duty Death of Captain W. Chris Mertz. pic.twitter.com/cOtWti5USz Rancho Santa Fe Fire (@RSF Fire) January 22, 2021
Rancho Santa Fe fire captain dies of COVID-19 complications [The San Diego Union-Tribune]
Fire officials on Thursday night said a captain who worked 30 years for the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District died from complications of COVID-19.
A statement from the district said Capt. W. Chris Mertz, who died Wednesday, will receive full line-of-duty-death honors.
The 54-year-old was most recently assigned to Station 5 in Harmony Grove Village, according to the district’s statement. He is survived by his wife, Canli, his son, Garrett, who is a firefighter with Cal Fire San Diego, and his two daughters, Natalie and Roxanne, who both serve in the U.S. Air Force.