A Kansas City firefighter was fatally shot in the chest by a police officer following an altercation early Sunday, police said, just hours after the firefighter's wedding.

At 2:30 a.m. local time, an off-duty Kansas City police officer in uniform responded to a report of an altercation between a man and a cab driver.

Anthony Bruno

The officer, who has yet to be identified, made contact with off-duty firefighter Anthony V. Bruno of the Kansas City Fire Department.

Bruno allegedly ran from the officer, prompting the officer to give chase, NBC affiliate KSHB reported. When the officer caught up with Bruno, he began to resist and assault the officer, police said.

“During the assault, the subject pinned the officer to the ground and struck him multiple times about his face and head,” Kansas City Police Department Capt. Tye Grant told NBC News in a statement.

“And that got pretty bad,” Grant told KSHB. “That officer, in fear of his life, eventually fired his gun, striking the subject.”

The officer allegedly attempted to administer CPR on Bruno before first responders arrived. Bruno was transported to an area hospital, where he later died, police said.

The police officer was also taken to the hospital and is reported to have sustained serious head injuries.

Grant said the officer has since been released with from the hospital “while his swelling goes down,” but will return at a later date to undergo surgery to “repair facial injuries.”

Bruno had been celebrating his wedding, which had occurred only hours before the incident, police said.

Kansas City Fire spokesman James Garrett told NBC News that Bruno had been with the department since 2008. He was a third-generation member of the fire department and was "well-liked" by the community.

Along with his new wife, Bruno is survived by his father, a retired deputy fire chief, his mother and two sisters.