Walter Patmon Jr. was born February 17, 1951, in Chicago, Illinois. On Sunday, November 11, 2012, Firefighter Walter Patmon, 61, had a heart attack at his South Side fire station when he returned from a call.

During the day, Firefighter Patmon and his ladder company responded to two EMS incidents and a vehicle crash. At 2205hrs, Firefighter Patmon and his crew were the arriving ladder at a reported structural fire. Firefighter Patmon donned his protective clothing and set up the aerial ladder for operations.  While driving back to quarters, Firefighter Patmon began to suffer shortness of breath and chest pains. Upon arrival at the fire station at 2224hrs, Firefighter Patmon’s symptoms quickly worsened. An ambulance was called and other firefighters provided care for Firefighter Patmon. He left for the hospital by ambulance at 2231hrs and arrived at the hospital at 2236hrs.

Despite care given in the emergency room, Patmon was pronounced dead at 2320hrs. The cause of death was a heart attack. Firefighter Patmon is survived by his wife and three young adult daughters.