Firefighter punished for posing found dead

A Philadelphia firefighter who caused a stir at the department when he posed shirtless for a charity calendar is dead, Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers confirmed.

John "Jack" Slivinski, 31, was found dead in his Lawndale home early Saturday morning, Ayers said. Police are investigating the cause of death.

"The Philadelphia Fire Department has lost a son," Ayers said. "As you may imagine, this is devastating to everybody."

Ayers would not say whether foul play is suspected. Slivinski was not on duty at the time of his death, he said.

Police were not immediately available to comment on the case.

Slivinski was suspended in April after he posed shirtless in front of the Swann Fountain in Logan Circle for a calendar called "The Nation's Bravest." Slivinski was charged with conduct unbecoming a firefighter and transferred from his unit, the department's elite Rescue 1.

He was later allowed to return to Rescue 1 after a meeting with the commissioner.