FAIR OAKS, Calif. — The Sacramento Metropolitan Fire Department dedicated a fire station after a long-time fire captain who died in 2009 from a job-related illness.
At a ceremony Monday morning, officials dedicated Fire Station 32 in Fair Oaks to Capt. John de Graaff, who died on April 25, 2009, from cardiac arrest believed to have been brought on by his years of work as a firefighter.
Family and friends of de Graaff were on hand for the ceremony at Station 32 at 10 a.m.
“Captain John de Graaf was a mentor not only as a fire service professional but a counselor to the personal lives of the many Metro Fire personnel who had the opportunity to work with him,” a spokesperson for Sac Metro Fire wrote in a press release.
Capt. de Graaff is the third former Sacramento Metropolitan Fire Department member and its predecessor agencies to receive this honor, officials said. In total, 22 members of the agency have been recognized for line-of-duty deaths, according to the department.
Capt. de Graaff predominantly served within the communities of Fair Oaks and Orangevale during his career.
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