The Altamahaw Ossipee Fire Department said they responded to a report of a house fire on Burch Bridge Road, Burlington, at 9:45 a.m. on Tuesday, February 4. While en route to the blaze, it was confirmed that one person was still trapped inside the house.

According to Fox 8, the address was the home of Eddie Thomas, a veteran paramedic of more than 30 years with Alamance County and member of the Altamahaw Ossipee Fire Department.

Thomas was already at the scene as a paramedic when firefighters arrived at the house. The fire department then managed to pull his 40-year-old daughter Candice Wynn out of the burning building.

Emergency personnel, including Thomas, then performed CPR on Wynn before she was transported to Alamance Regional Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.

“I’d be a wreck out there,” Altamahaw-Ossipee Fire Chief Edward Lipscomb told Fox 8. “Eddie never missed a beat. And that’s the kind of guy he is. He did everything he could. Everybody on the scene did everything they could.

“We’re family, it is heartbreaking to see that,” Lipscomb added. “And as a parent, I can’t even imagine what he’s going through.”

A GoFundMe Page has been set up in order to help Thomas rebuild his damaged home and replace the possessions he lost, as well as Wynn’s funeral costs.

“We can’t replace his daughter, but we need to help him. You know, do what’s right for her,” Lipscomb added.

The GoFundMe page has managed to raise more than $14,000 for Thomas and his family in just one day.

“[Thomas] was tasked with treating HIS daughter (who was already in cardiac arrest), in HIS own front yard, of HIS house that was on fire. This is the absolute definition of the worst case scenario ever imaginable for anyone in public safety,” a description of the fundraising page reads.

The cause of the fire is being investigated by the Alamance County Fire Marshall Office and North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshalls. The American Red Cross is also assisting the family.

“The A-O Fire Department is saddened by this tragic event, the fire happened at the residence of one of our dedicated members,” fire officials said in a statement. “This member has over 30 years of service to citizens of Alamance County through our department and Alamance County EMS.

“Please keep the member of our department and his family in your thoughts and prayers in this difficult [time].”

The Alamance County Fire Marshall Office has been contacted for further comment.