Firefighter succumbs to third battle with brain cancer.
Toronto Fire Service Acting Captain David Charles Gray, Toronto Fire Station 142, B-Platoon, passed away March 9 at the age of 48 following a courageous battle with cancer.
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David Charles Gray was a "real likeable, loving guy" who went on camping trips with his family and got along with all his fellow firefighters, said a long-time colleague.Gray, who spent his 23-year career in North York, died March 9 after a battle with brain cancer. The passing of the 48-year-old acting captain of Fire Station 142 at Jane Street and Sheppard Avenue, who left behind wife Carolyn and sons Michael and Cameron, is recognized as a line of duty death. "We worked on and off for 10 years or more," said Acting Captain Michael Russell of Fire Station 142. "He lived in Barrie but worked in North York. He was a great guy, a loving guy and got along well with the other guys. The guys respected him."Gray was diagnosed with brain cancer in November 2008 and had surgery to remove the tumor, Russell said. A second operation was performed in March 2009 after the tumors returned. The cancer came back for a third time several months ago, Russell said. "There was not much they could do for him at that point," he said. Gray succumbed to the disease at Hospice Simcoe in Barrie. "It hit us pretty hard," Russell said of Gray's initial diagnosis. "Not that any cancer is good, but brain cancer is not a good one to get. It seems to be quite high among firefighters and we aren't sure why. Originally he wasn't given very long to live but he did get some quality time with his wife and family. It got to the point where he had so many tumors in the brain that all they could do was make him comfortable. I know he's missed by many. He was still a young guy at 48 for cancer to take his life."According to the Canadian Fallen Firefighters Foundation, the last time a Toronto firefighter's passing was classified as line of duty death was in 2008 when former District Chief Bob Leek, 55, collapsed Aug. 10 on scene of a propane gas explosion at Keele Street and Wilson Avenue.Gray's funeral was held Saturday, March 13 in Barrie.