A Houston firefighter has died after he and another first responder were injured while battling a warehouse fire.

The Houston Fire Department responded to the Polk Street fire around 10:50 p.m. local time on Wednesday, November 6, according to Fire Chief Thomas Muñoz, who spoke at a press conference. press conference overnight.

Less than 10 minutes after crews arrived on scene, Muñoz said a rescue call was made from inside the burning building after a wall collapsed.

Two firefighters were then transported to Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, according to firefighters. Among them was Marcelo Garcia, 42, who died from his injuries, Muñoz said.

Garcia had been with the HFD for 10 years, spending the last six at Station 23. Muñoz described him as “a true hero.”

“He was a man who got up every morning to come to work so he could help others and save lives,” the fire chief told reporters.

Patrick “Marty” Lancton of the Houston firefighters’ union said at the news conference that it was “a very sad day for Houston firefighters.”

“We cry together, we pray together, but most importantly, we honor our brother and his life. We honor him together,” he said at the press conference.

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Houston Mayor John Whitmire said he recently met with Garcia and described him as a “young man with his life ahead of him.”

“Firefighter Garcia left this morning expecting a good day, a tough day, a dangerous day, but he expected to go home,” Whitmire told reporters. He later added: “We will honor Firefighter Garcia across the city. We will not forget him.”

The warehouse fire was eventually put out, according to Muñoz.

The second firefighter injured while battling the fire suffered minor injuries, the fire chief said.

“Funeral information will be shared in the coming days,” firefighters said. said in a post on.