A career firefighter, Michael Kucsma, was pronounced dead on June 16 following recreational scuba diving with a group in Casco Bay.
Kucsma, 43, of Buxton, was a full-time captain with the Portland Fire Department and a deputy fire chief in Gorham.
Gorham Fire Chief Robert Lefebvre on Tuesday said that Kucsma was a talented firefighter, who headed up the training program in Gorham.
“He was top notch, top notch,” Lefebvre said.
Portland Fire Chief Jerome LaMoria, at a press meeting on Tuesday, said his department responded to a call at 3:45 p.m. on Monday off Veranda Street, when one of a group of divers reported him missing.
LaMoria said a diving partner found Kucsma and “extricated” him to a dock. Efforts to resuscitate Kucsma were unsuccessful.
“This is a tragic event for the city of Portland,” LaMoria said.
Portland Police Chief Michael Sauschuck said on Tuesday that Kucsma’s death is not suspicious, but the Maine Medical Examiner’s Office is conducting an autopsy to determine cause of death.
Funeral arrangements were not available by noon on Tuesday.
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