‘It’s our job’: Veteran firefighter returns to duty after 2 months in burn unit

MARION COUNTY, Fla. — After ten surgeries and having 24% of his body burned, Captain Chris Trubelhorn is ready to get back to fighting fires.

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“A burden like this is life-changing, but there is also a lot of positive that came out of it. There’s a lot of love of there, not just for Chris Trubelhorn, but for firefighters,” said Trubelhorn.

Eyewitness News sat down with the Marion County Fire Rescue Captain six months after he and two other firefighters battled a blaze that totaled a Silver Springs and left him severely burned.

" We trained with live fires, we trained with simulators and under 19 years I been in tons of fires, but this one was unique,” said Trubelhorn.

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He said that call was different because he was working with a rookie, and it was just his fifth shift.

“It was just five days on the job, and I didn’t know where he was, and I just wasn’t going to leave him,” said Trubelhorn.

The call was a kitchen fire, and Engine 4 arrived on the scene first. Out of the three on the truck, both Trubelhorn and his partner went inside to douse the flames, but upon entry, he said the home was getting hotter with the heat trapped inside.

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“We went about six or seven steps into the house, and my rookie told me that it was getting hot,” said Trubelhorn.

Trubelhorn said the communication between him, and his partner was steady until it stopped. The visibility inside the home was completely black, and he lost sight of the firefighter who entered with him.

“I wasn’t able to find him. And I had to leave. At that point, I was having trouble finding the exit. I broke a window I yelled outside,” said Trubelhorn.

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Trubelhorn said the third firefighter on the scene knocked down the front door, which gave him enough light to see to get out.

He said he was relieved to see everyone made it out okay but realized he was severely burned.

Trubelhorn’s partners helped him with his burns until an ambulance took him to the University of Florida Shands Burn Unit.

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His treatment has faced multiple challenges and setbacks. He sustained burns to his hands, forearms, and upper torso. He underwent ten surgeries and still has more therapy to go.

Trubelhorn is back home with his family, and thanks to everyone from the community, his department, and other departments across Central Florida for the prayers, cards, and uplifting spirits.

“The support I got from my wife. The support I got from the department kept my spirits high. Even after all the surgeries, I still never doubted that I would get back,”

The plan is to get back to fighting fires with Engine 4 before he retires in eight months. Due to his doctor’s orders, he is on light duty until cleared.

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