Family and friends say a Dallas firefighter who died battling a blaze at an apartment complex on Sunday was a devoted family man.
People who knew Lt. Todd Krodle say they remember his small-town values most.
He grew up in Greenville, attending Highland Terrace Baptist Church. Even as an adult, he stayed faithful to his childhood church after moving to Caddo Mills.
Longtime members of the church remember teaching Krodle at Sunday school.
The Rev. Bobby Atkins said Krodle blossomed into a man any father would be proud of.
"If you needed him there, he would be there," he said. "He was the kind of person that if you had a friend with him, you had a friend for life. People like to say, 'He's good people.'"
The Dallas apartment complex where Krodle died has a history of "numerous and persistent" code violations, city officials said Monday.
For his fellow firefighters, the loss of a pillar within the department is devastating. One thing they remember is just how loyal he was.
Krodle drove from Caddo Mills to Station 26 in southwest Dallas for years.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
Firefighters can transfer to any station if there is an opening, but he opted to stay at Station 26, even if leaving would have shaved time from his long commute.
"I would say that has a lot to do with loyalty, how loyal he was to who he worked with, where he worked and the people he served," Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesman Lt. Joel Lavender said.
Krodle died after he fell through a second-story roof of an apartment complex while fighting a fire.
"My brother was my hero from my earliest days," Kurt Krodle said. "Now he has died as a hero working to protect the citizens of Dallas and a fellow firefighter. I'm quite proud today, as in every day of my life, to be Todd Krodle's baby brother."
Todd Krodle is survived by his wife, Kelli, and their two children, 12-year-old Cade and 10-year-old Caroline.
Chad Stone, the brother of Shannon Stone, a firefighter who died after falling last month at Ranger's Ballpark in Arlington, created a Facebook page to honor Krodle.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
Related Coverage:
