* Richard W. Pratt, 76; Retired Firefighter

Richard William Pratt, a retired firefighter at Point Mugu Navy base, died Tuesday at his home in Oxnard from complications of lung cancer. He was 76.

Pratt was born April 10, 1924, to William Pratt and Mary Wheatley in Los Angeles.

He joined the Marines at the age of 17 to serve in the Pacific during World War II and he was later recalled to duty during the Korean War.

Pratt married Assunta “Susie” Rocco in Chicago. The couple moved with their two small children in 1952 to Barstow, where he worked for the railroad and in civil service.

In 1959, the family moved to Oxnard, and Pratt began working as a crash crew firefighter at Point Mugu. He retired in the early 1980s.

Pratt worked as a volunteer at St. John’s Regional Medical Center in Oxnard.

In addition to his wife of 50 years, Pratt is survived by a daughter, Mary Johnson of Aloha, Ore.; a son, Joseph Pratt of Northridge; six grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Pratt’s name may be made to Livingston Memorial Hospice in Oxnard.

A funeral Mass is scheduled at 11 a.m. at St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in Oxnard. Burial will follow at Santa Clara Cemetery in Oxnard. Arrangements are under the direction of Conrad-Carroll Mortuary in Oxnard.