Friends remember man killed in Lake Havasu City hyperbaric chamber fire

Friends remember man killed in hyperbaric chamber fire

PHOENIX - Walter Foxcroft was at the center of some of Valley college sports fans' biggest wins and losses. He didn't play the game, but brought games to life as a mascot for the University of Arizona, then the Arizona Cardinals.

What they're saying:

Kirk Sibley, a former Wilbur the Wildcat mascot alongside Foxcroft, remembered him fondly.

"There's a lot of them will do the job well. And then there's just a couple out there that will just knock it out of the park. And he was he was one of those."

Foxcroft spent three of his four years at the University of Arizona in costume as Wilbur the Wildcat.

"He’s just larger than life. He's just a beautiful person. He really was. And, you know, it's.. it's hard," Sibley added, reflecting on their close friendship that extended beyond their mascot duties. The two even returned to Tucson 20 years later for homecoming, donning the Wilbur suit once more.

Sibley recalled humorous moments with Foxcroft in character. "You grew up with, seeing Wilbur and Sparky, you're doing that right… fights on the sidelines with Sparky. He would take his fingers across the hat because we had this big cowboy hat and he would like, you know, razor it off and make it like, really like, you know, kind of like…"

What we know:

Wally Foxcroft's life was tragically cut short inside a hyperbaric chamber. A flash fire ignited within the oxygen therapy machine at Havasu Health and Hyperbarics, a practice he co-founded. Foxcroft was trapped inside when fire crews arrived and died at the scene. He was a husband and a father.

"A big presence and prominent figure amongst all of us for 20 something years and, you know, that's the finality of it. There's just nothing you can do to any of us can do to replace it," Sibley said.

What we don't know:

The cause of the fire remains unclear.

What's next:

In Foxcroft's honor, generations of former Wilbur and Wilma mascots are working to establish a scholarship in his name for future mascots, aiming to alleviate the typically out-of-pocket costs associated with the role.

A GoFundMe has also been set up for Wally's family: https://www.gofundme.com/f/honoring-wallys-legacy-aid-his-family