“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

— John 15:13

At 5 feet 5 inches and 130 pounds, Tyler Casey was barely big enough to control the force of a powerful fire hose.

But it’s the size of his heart that others said they will remember most about the young Seneca firefighter.

Casey, 21, a volunteer firefighter with the Seneca Area Fire Protection District, died Monday at Freeman Hospital West in Joplin after being injured Saturday afternoon while trying to warn Newton County residents of a killer tornado. The fire department held a news conference Tuesday to talk about the life and death of a man other firefighters are calling a true hero.

“There’s no other term for Tyler than hero,” said Michael Steele, Seneca Area Fire Protection District chief. “There’s no greater love than giving your life for another.”

Casey carried a lot of responsibility for a man his age, his fellow firefighters said. He had a 2-year-old daughter, Taryn, for whom he helped care. He worked as a machinist at Carlin’s Machine in Neosho, was finishing up his firefighting studies at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, and still eagerly bounded in to do volunteer work at the Seneca fire district office in Racine.