Matt Semko is a disciplined Citadel cadet and decorated football hero. His uncompromising integrity leads him to defy and then reject the rules of conduct that have shaped him; first at The Citadel and then the Charleston Fire Department. Semko's inner struggle against these powerful institutions shape him into a new person; someone who risks his life without regard. Semko becomes "Crazy Matt." Throughout his tale insights are revealed into the inner workings of the Charleston Fire Department; the years of equipment and training neglect that culminated in the worst fire Charleston and South Carolina has ever witnessed. His story recounts the deaths of nine of his brothers who perish in a senseless, predictable, and preventable tragedy.