Massachusetts firefighter dies after battling apartment fire

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts firefighter injured while battling an early morning blaze in an apartment building has died.

Worcester Fire Chief Michael Lavoie confirmed the death of 36-year-old Christopher Roy in a news conference Sunday morning, hours after the blaze.

Lavoie says Roy has been with the department a little more than two years and leaves behind an 8-year-old daughter.

The fire in the six-unit building was reported at about 4 a.m. Sunday. All the tenants escaped uninjured.

Lavoie says the fire started in the basement, but “conditions deteriorated rapidly” and several firefighters were trapped on the second floor. A second firefighter was also taken to the hospital.

The death comes days after Worcester marked 19 years since six city firefighters were killed battling a warehouse fire on Dec. 3, 1999.