Remembering Capt. Randy Gross: One of an ever growing list of firefighters lost to cancer
SACRAMENTO - Retired Sacramento Metro Fire Captain Randy Gross is remembered by his close friends as a man of faith, family and fighting fire.
"He was passionate about everything he did," said fellow Metro firefighter Anthony Kastros. "There was nothing he didn't do 100,000%, especially love his family. To be his friend was a gift. It was a blessing every day."
Gross died of job-related cancer on March 17 after serving with the Sacramento Metro Fire Department for nearly three decades. He leaves behind a loving wife, Donna, and four children.
"His dedication to his work, to his community, to sports with his children, that would be a prime example to follow," said friend and former firefighter Rick Lee.
Gross was also a longtime lacrosse coach in his community of El Dorado Hills.
"He was the most positive person, one of those people who had a resting smile face," Kastros said. "He just was always smiling."
Kastros, Gross and Lee all served on Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 7 which deployed to New York City to search for survivors after the September 11 terror attacks.
At ground zero, Gross led a canine search team alongside his faithful partner, Dusty, a golden retriever.
"The significance of the responsibility that we had as the canine handlers and the trust everyone had in you. People from across the county who never knew you or how much you trained and just said, if they say it's time to move on we are gonna move on. And that's a tremendous responsibility," Kastros said.
"He was a person who was determined and dedicated. He set the bar and gave 100% to the program," Lee said.
Gross described his 9/11 search and rescue mission in his own words in a video dated September 2013.
"The hope in the faces as I'm bringing my search dog to an unimaginable pile of twisted metal in hopes we would find someone alive. I remember those that received comfort just by hugging my search dog," Gross said.
The team of firefighters even rang the reopening bell at the New York Stock Exchange on September 19, 2001.
"The 343 firefighters who went into those buildings knew they probably wouldn't come out. But they saved countless lives in doing so. They didn't lose their lives they gave their lives. And Randy did too all these years later," Kastros said. "It only takes one exposure, and for Randy, it was 9/11."
Gross' grim diagnosis is a danger familiar to every firefighter. Cancer is now the leading cause of death for firefighters nationwide.
"And we know that. It's one of those things on our hearts and minds," said Parker Wilbourn of the Sacramento Metro Fire. "But it's a service and sacrifice we take knowing we are making other people's lives better."
Gross is the third firefighter Sacramento Metro Fire has lost to job-related cancer in just six months.
"One of the most alarming things is cancer is not just affecting the older folks within our ranks or the retirees. It's affecting the younger folks, too," Wilbourn said.
It's why Metro Fire has taken steps to modernize its methods of fighting fire, now with a new decontamination unit to strip firefighters of their dirty clothing on the scene and hose them down before putting on a clean uniform.
This helps limit their exposure to deadly carcinogens daily.
The California Fire Foundation said awareness surrounding the profession and cancer has never been more important. Their memorial honoring firefighters who have fallen in the line of duty at the California State Capitol Park reached its limit last year.
They broke ground on an expansion project Wednesday, March 20 that will provide the capacity to honor an additional 4600 firefighters over the next 150 years.
Gross' name will be etched among the growing list of heroes who paid the ultimate price to protect their communities.
