Pa. firefighter injured last week has died

Pa. firefighter injured last week has died

GROVE CITY, Pa. — A firefighter who was critically injured in a fatal house fire in the borough Friday morning has died.

Bradley Holmes, 21, a firefighter with the Pine Township Engine Co., died at 5:15 this morning, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s office confirmed.

He had been in the burn unit of UPMC Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh with burns over 75 percent of his body.

Holmes was trapped on the second floor of a duplex on Garden Avenue while searching for the occupant of the apartment, Patricia Andrews Smith, 40, who perished in the blaze. Another Pine Township firefighter, Scott King, was trapped with him and injured, but not seriously.

A woman who answered the phone at the Pine Township department said it is preparing a statement for later today.

On the department’s Web site, its chief, Christopher Holmes, who is Bradley’s brother, wrote a message.

“This morning my brave little brother lost his fight against his burns he sustained last Friday,” the chief said. “Brad will always be my hero. And to all the supporters out there I send you my deepest appreciation and love.”