Funeral held for New Haven firefighter killed in line of duty

A funeral was held Thursday for a New Haven firefighter who died while responding to a house fire.

News 12 Staff

May 20, 2021, 11:33 AM

Updated 1,092 days ago

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A funeral was held Thursday for a New Haven firefighter who died while responding to a house fire.
Family, friends and hundreds of firefighters from across the state and the country said their final goodbyes to New Haven firefighter Ricardo Torres Jr.
A procession was held from New Haven Fire Headquarters to Saint Mary's Church on Hillhouse Avenue.
There was a motorcade along I-91 to transport Torres to his final resting place at Cedar Hill Cemetery in Hartford.
Torres was killed while battling a fire at a multifamily home on Valley Street last Wednesday.
Two people had been trapped in the home and were rescued.
Torres and Lt. Samod Rankins were found unconscious following a mayday call.
Torres died of his injuries.
Rankins was taken to the burn unit at Bridgeport Hospital where his condition is improving.
Torres joined the New Haven Fire Department in July 2019.
He leaves behind a wife, son and a son on the way.
The fire chief says Torres wanted to be a firefighter since he was a kid and died doing what he loved.
Firefighters from a number of departments in the area took part in the services today to pay their final respects to the man who's being remembered as a hero.


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