(St. Louis)- KTRS

St. Louis Fire Department Captain John Kemper lost his life one week after suffering injuries while on duty, fighting a fire over the 4th of July holiday period.

59- year old Kemper joined the department in 1993 and in 2008 he was promoted to the position of Captain.

Co-workers have described him as kind, dedicated and personable.

Captain Kemper joined his colleagues to battle a fire around 2 am on July 5th in a vacant house in the 3600 block of Pennsylvania Avenue in south St. Louis. He was injured and hospitalized. He died from incident-related injuries a week later on July 12th. Investigators believe illegal fireworks may have contributed to the structure fire.

Visitation is set for this Thursday from 3-to-8 pm at Harris Stowe State University at 3026 Laclede Avenue St. Louis 63103. Visitation takes place in the Dr. Henry Givens Jr. Administration Building.

Captain Kemper’s funeral will follow the next day, Friday, at 11 am, also at Harris Stowe.