Autopsy Shows NC Firefighter Died of Undiagnosed Heart Disease

When a 34-year-old health conscious firefighter collapsed while working out in June, fellow firefighters were stunned.

A pathologist has ruled that East Lincoln Firefighter Joshua Warren died of heart disease that had gone undiagnosed, according to WNCN. 

“Really couldn’t believe it. A 34-year-old man in his shape would just fall over with a heart condition because he was a picture of health. You would have never…never in a million years would you have expected it," Assistant Chief Mike Turner told the reporter. 

The medical examiner said the cause of Warren’s death was hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a disease where the heart muscle becomes abnormally thick. Pumping blood becomes hard.

People with it have few, if any symptoms. And, firefighters say they didn't know Warren was suffering from it. 

He passed agility tests and a physical to become a firefighter.

But, his officers are investigating if echo cardiograms should be required medical screening.

“I guess it depends on what it costs per firefighter and we work off a county budget. It’s one of those things where you can’t put a price on life that’s for sure and we know that. If we could and it could bring back Josh – yeah, I would.”