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Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta regretfully announced the death of Lieutenant John H. Martinson of Engine Company 249 in Brooklyn.

Lt. Martinson, 40, sustained critical injuries while battling a two-alarm fire at 1700 Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn on January 3.

He was transported to Kings County Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Lt. Martinson was appointed to the FDNY on May 9, 1993.

He previously served at Engine 204, Engine 80 and Ladder 23. While serving at Engine 80, he received a unit citation in 1996.

He was promoted to lieutenant in December 2002 and assigned to Engine 249 in March 2006.

A resident of Staten Island, Lt. Martinson is survived by his wife, Jessica, and 1-year-old son, John Patrick.

Lt. Martinson is the 1,138th member of the New York City Fire Department to make the Supreme Sacrifice in the Department's 144-year history.

Fire at 1700 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn

Firefighters responded to a call for a fire in a 14th floor apartment at 1700 Bedford Avenue at 7:14 p.m., a 25-story multiple dwelling known as the Ebbets Field Houses.

Engine 249 was the first due to the fire.

A second alarm was transmitted at 7:35 p.m. and it was deemed under control at 8:33 p.m. Two other firefighters were transported to Kings County Hospital with smoke inhalation and two were transported to Weill Cornell Medical Center with burns.

Fire marshals are investigating the cause of the fire.

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It is with deep regret that we announce the Line of duty death of Firefighter Jospeh Graffagnino of Ladder Co. #5 (detailed to Engine Co 24) and Firefighter Robert Beddia of Engine Co. 24.

Story from the NY Post August 19, 2007

by Erin Calabrese, Ginger Adams Otis and Melissa Prince

Two of New York's Bravest perished yesterday in a massive blaze that ripped through the crippled Deutsche Bank building at Ground Zero - filling the lower Manhattan skyline with black smoke and evoking cruel memories of 9/11.

Mayor Bloomberg said the downtown eyesore remained structurally sound.

The FDNY identified its fallen as Joseph Graffagnino and Robert C. Beddia from Engine 24 and Ladder 5 in SoHo.

"It's so awful, I don't know what to do. My whole family is distraught," Graffagnino's tearful grandmother Connie Marchisotto, 90, told The Post. "This is horrible."

The grieving grandmother said she feared the worst when she saw the fire on TV.

"I turned on the news to check on the weather and I saw this breaking news," Marchisotto said. "He was my grandson, so many good memories."

Neighbors and friends gathered at Graffagnino's Brooklyn home to console his family. The eight-year vet would have turned 34 tomorrow.

His parents had spent yesterday in New Jersey with Graffagnino's sister, who is having a complicated pregnancy, neighbors said.

Beddia, 53, was 23-year FDNY vet and Staten Island resident. He was among of team of FDNY and NYPD rescuers at 9/11 who toured the country after that dark day to thank well-wishers.

Beddia recently purchased a 32-inch TV as a gift for neighbor Noreen Foley, who has collected his mail for the past 14 years.

"For getting his mail, he got me a big, gigantic TV," said Foley, 63. "He was a friend and really nice to know."

Graffagnino and Beddia's station, blocks away and within eyeshot of the Deutsche, lost 11 firefighters on 9/11 and three others in the line of duty since then.

Firefighters from companies across the city came to the station to pay their respects.

"This house has seen more pain and devastation that anyone should have to deal with," FDNY Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta said outside the firehouse.

Bloomberg said yesterday's blaze added one more heartbreaking addendum to 9/11.

"Today's sad events have extended the sacrifice that the city and Fire Department have made," he said at New York University Downtown Hospital, where the two firefighters died.

"Today's events really are a another cruel blow to our city and to our Fire Department."

The blaze broke out at 4:30 p.m. on the 17th floor, and it took 3 1/2 minutes for the first of 275 firefighters and 70 pieces of equipment to arrive at the scene, said Scoppetta.

It was declared under control at 10:40 p.m., but firefighters kept a close eye on 12 shaky beams near the blaze's ignition that threatened the building's structural integrity.

Firefighters faced "maze-like conditions" with plywood propped up against walls and boxes of equipment all around, FDNY sources said.

"This was an especially difficult fire made especially difficult because the building was under demolition," Scoppetta said. "There was a lot of asbestos and asbestos abatement going on."

The two heroes were doomed after their tanks of compressed air ran out, sources said.

"The conditions probably changed rapidly. They were in a heavy smoke condition and they were trapped," said an FDNY source, adding that their masks and tanks have been impounded for further testing.

"There's no talk of malfunctioning equipment."

Firefighters were also slowed when the building's indoor water source didn't work, FDNY sources said, forcing them to bring in their own hoses.

"There's supposed to be a functioning standpipe. We don't believe it was. We don't know why it wasn't working," an FDNY official said.

The building had been swathed in scaffolding and black construction webbing.

Graffagnino and Beddia were found on the 14th and 15th floors.

Two emergency medical technicians who worked on the heroes told The Post they suffered from massive smoke inhalation.

"We tried everything: CPR, incubation, EKGs, to see what we can do," said a five-year EMT vet.

As soon as the firefighters were rolled into the emergency room, doctors scrambled to their aid.

"All the doctors went running down. My doctor pounced on him [one of the firefighters] to try to get him breathing," said patient Douglas Richardson, 54.

Nearby residents watched the blaze stretch up the building's remaining 26 floors, and said they were fearful that they were breathing in toxic air.

Felix and Jamie Sebacious, at 120 Greenwich St., talked firefighters into letting them through the lines to rescue their puppy, Elvis.

"We always keep our windows closed, but the smoke definitely got in, it smelled," said Felix Sebacious.

Officials with the federal Environmental Protection Agency rushed project managers to the scene to check monitors that measure levels of toxic gas.

Bloomberg said air tests in the neighborhood showed no immediate environmental threat.

 

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Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta announced today the death of Firefighter Daniel F. Pujdak of Ladder Company 146 in Brooklyn. Firefighter Pujdak, 23, was fatally injured this afternoon while battling an all-hands fire at 83 Meserole St. in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. Preliminary reports indicate Firefighter Pujdak was operating on the roof of a four-story apartment building when he fell to the ground and sustained critical injuries. He was transported to Bellevue Hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries. Firefighter Pujdak, a resident of Fresh Meadows, Queens, was appointed to the FDNY on September 25, 2005. Firefighters received a call for a fire at 4:54 p.m. at 83 Meserole St. Upon arrival, a fire was discovered in a fourth-floor apartment and was soon brought under control. Approximately 60 firefighters and 12 units responded. There were no other reported injuries. Fire marshals determined the fire was accidental and appears to have been caused by careless smoking. The investigation is continuing. This is the first line of duty death since Firefighter Michael C. Reilly of Engine Company 75 and Lieutenant Howard J. Carpluk Jr. of Engine Company 42 made the Supreme Sacrifice while battling a third-alarm fire in the South Bronx on August 27, 2006. Firefighter Pujdak is the 1,135th member of the New York City Fire Department to make the Supreme Sacrifice in the Department's 143-year history.

May 19th, 2007

Past and present firefighters gathered at Ladder Company 30 on May 19, to celebrate the company’s 100 years of service to Harlem.

“I spent the best 10 years of my life at this firehouse,” said Assistant Chief Thomas Jensen, who worked out of the company as a firefighter. “I was always proud to say I was a member of Ladder 30 because its reputation is first rate.”

The company has responded to some of the city’s most notorious emergencies. They were first due to respond to the infamous Collyer brothers’ mansion in 1947 and the General Slocum steamer fire in 1904.

“This has always been a tough place to work - a place where you have to be fast on your feet,” Battalion Chief Frank Donnelly of Battalion 16. “But the members of Ladder 30 are among the best. They have never failed me on the fire ground.”

The company has received 26 unit citations and its members have received 33 Department medals.

Among the guests at the ceremony were four captains who have served the company since the 1960s.

“This is a great day for the residents of Harlem and the firefighters here,” said Captain Edward Tierney, Ladder 30’s current captain. “We’ve grown over the years, we’ve seen some spectacular fires, but the attitude in this firehouse has never changed. There is nothing like being a firefighter here.”

 

October 11th, 2006

Thanks to everyone who showed up for the 99th Annual FDNY Memorial service at the Firefighter’s Memorial Monument on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Also a big thank you to Engine 69 and Ladder 28 "The Harlem Hilton" for hosting this years breakfast and mass prior to the memorial service.

Honored were Lieutenant Carpluk and Firefighter Reilly who died from critical injuries sustained while battling a third-alarm fire in the Bronx on August 27, 2006.

Lieutenant Carpluk was a 20-year veteran of the FDNY who was twice awarded for meritorious acts during his distinguished career, while Firefighter Reilly had just graduated from the Fire Academy in July 2006.

“The families of these brave members are now a part of our Fire Department family,” said Chief of Department Salvatore Cassano.

As of October 11, a total of 1,134 FDNY members have made the Supreme Sacrifice in the Department’s 142-year history.

 

September 11th, 2006

Thank you to everyone who showed up for the September 11th memorial mass on the 5th Anniversary of 9/11. Never Forget and God Bless.

The picture on the left was taken on September 11th, 2006.

"May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand."

 

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Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta announced the death of Firefighter Michael C. Reilly of Engine Company 75 in the Bronx and FDNY Lt. Howard J. Carpluk, Jr. of Engine Company 42 in the Bronx.

Firefighter Reilly, 25, a probationary firefighter who graduated from the Fire Academy on July 6, 2006, was injured while battling a third-alarm fire in the South Bronx on August 27.

He was pronounced dead a short time later at Bronx Lebanon Hospital.

Firefighter Reilly was appointed to the FDNY on April 11, 2006, and spent 13 weeks in the Fire Academy before being assigned to Engine Company 75.
 
He joined the United States Marine Corps in 2000 and was a Sergeant in the Marine Reserves.
 
A resident of Sleepy Hollow, Firefighter Reilly is survived by his mother Monica, father Michael, brother Kevin and sister Erin.

Firefighter Reilly is the 1,133rd member of the New York City Fire Department to make the Supreme Sacrifice in the Department's 141-year history.

Lt. Carpluk, 43, a 20-year veteran of the FDNY, died from critical injuries he sustained while battling a third-alarm fire in the South Bronx on August 27.

He was initially transported to Bronx Lebanon Hospital and was then transferred to the cardiac support center in Montefiore Medical Center where he was pronounced dead on August 28.

Lt. Carpluk was appointed to the FDNY on August 2, 1986. He began his career in Ladder Company 31 in the Bronx and was promoted to lieutenant on February 6, 1999. He has been assigned to Engine 42 since January 2002.

During his exceptional career with the Fire Department, Lt. Carpluk received two citations for bravery, including one award for a heroic rescue on March 30, 1988, when he saved the lives of two unconscious men he found in the bedroom of a fire-engulfed apartment in the Bronx. 
 
A resident of Yaphank, Lt. Carpluk is survived by his wife Debra, his 10-year-old daughter Paige and his 14-year-old son Bradley.

Lt. Carpluk is the 1,134th member of the New York City Fire Department to make the Supreme Sacrifice in the Department's 141-year history. 

Three other FDNY members were seriously injured in the fire. Battalion Chief Thomas W. Auer, 47, of Battalion 17 and Lt. John P. Grasso, 45, of Engine 92 were treated and released from New York Presbyterian Hospital; and Firefighter Wayne J. Wallters, 30, of Engine 75, was treated and released from Jacobi Medical Center.

A total of 23 firefighters were injured in the fire.
 
Fire at 1575 Walton Avenue, South Bronx

Firefighters responded to a call for a fire at 12:29 p.m. at 1575 Walton Ave., a one-story 99-cent store near the Grand Concourse. 

The blaze quickly went to a second alarm at 12:38 p.m. and then a third alarm at 1:07 p.m. FDNY units entered the building in a search for fire and victims when a collapse occurred.

Maydays were transmitted and firefighters rescued five trapped members.

The blaze was brought under control at 4:43 p.m. Approximately 33 units and 138 firefighters participated in extinguishing the fire and the rescue effort.

Fire marshals, the FDNY Safety Command and Department of Buildings continue to investigate the cause of the fire.