A man in Chengwu county, Shandong province, died while trying to put out a fire in his neighbor’s house on Feb 14, Qilu Evening News reported on Wednesday.

Zhu Yading noticed the fire in his neighbor’s house that evening. After finding out that no one was home, he quickly climbed ladders over the wall to put out the fire, using washbasin and pipes.

After his wife and other helpers went to call firefighters, Zhu was found dead in the fire.

Zhu Yading, 51, was the director of the heritage protection office in Chengwu and curator of the local museum. A memorial service was held on Feb 18.