NEVER FORGET -- Black Sunday

[E40FDNYL35]

Monday marks the first anniversary of a day that claimed the lives of three of New York's Bravest in two separate fires.
January 23, 2005 was a brutal day to be a firefighter - a deadly day for three of them. On that cold, snowy Sunday, Firefighter Richard Sclafani was killed after being knocked unconscious, without his mask, as his brothers searched for him in a smoky basement fire in Brooklyn. Lieutenants Curtis Meyran and John Bellew died in the Bronx, when they jumped from a burning five-story building with four others who were critically hurt. “I think a lot came out of that fire besides the tragedy, the terrible nature of the event,” says Fire Commissioner Mr. Maggo. It was especially terrible because critics say the men might have lived if they had been equipped with personal ropes and harnesses, which the department stopped issuing in 2000. After Black Sunday the commissioner ordered another look, and after exhaustive testing a new rope and harness system was picked at a cost of $11 million. “We've had thousands of runs with it, thousands of tests, and tried intentionally to make it malfunction and we couldn't, so we're very secure with it,” says Magoo.
Nearly 1,500 of the city's nearly 12,000 firefighters have been trained on the system. The FDNY expects everyone to be trained by this summer. “We’ve not yet had an incident that called for the use of the ropes,” says the fire commissioner. “But they're there if they're needed, and if we save one life we will have done a lot." But the widows of the two fallen firefighters say it all comes too late for their husbands. They are suing the FDNY for failing to supply them with the potentially lifesaving gear.
Meantime, the four firefighters who survived - Brendan Cawley, Eugene Stolowski, Jeffrey Cool and Joseph DiBernardo - have battled back from serious injuries. Cool was forced to retire, and DiBernardo will join him at the end of next week when his retirement is finalized. All of them continue extensive physical therapy. A plaque dedication will be held Monday in the Bronx for Lieutenants Meyran and Bellew. Another will be held Tuesday in Brooklyn for Firefighter Sclafani.

[SteveDude]

I will be thinking of the Brothers and their families tomorrow. I remembered this morning it was a year ago on the Sunday I sat here in disbelief watching the tragedy of the day unfold.

[LtBlondie]

We here in Canada will remember as well. Hopefully we all can take a little time and reflect on their sacrifice.

[DeputyChiefGonzo]

Rest in peace, Brothers.

[mdoddsjffhnfc]

rest in peace, the brothers will always be remembered

[NJFFSA16]

God bless the families and friends of Lt. Curtis Meyran, Firefighter John Bellew and Firefighter Richard T. Sclafani of Bayside, Queens.

Rest in peace brothers!

[fireguy919]

Rest in Peace Brothers

[sbfdco1]

RIP Brothers, you will NEVER be forgotten!

[MIKEYLIKESIT]

I remember Ray. What a rotten day.

[Lewiston2FF]

I remember Ray. What a rotten day.

I remember too Ray.

[FFFRED]

Great turnout by the brothers today despite the weather. Very moving ceremony...especailly poem from the Curtis' Daughter.

Saw some brothers from Troy and I think some from NJ...to all that turned out today....thank you.

FTM-PTB

RIP-
Lt. Curtis Meyran B-26
Fr. John Bellew L-27
Fr. Richie Sclafani L-103

[medicchick]

Rest In Peace brothers...we will never forget your sacrifice.

[Tonyg26]

God Bless our brothers and their families.
God Bless those of us left behind to carry over on their behalf...Be safe - Remeber = EVERYDAY- EVERONE goes Home !!!!!!!

[mcleoud151]

I remember that day. It was a bad one. RIP bros.

RTF-KTF

[BCLepore]

My heart goes out to their families. I cannot even imagine the pain they feel.
Thanks for keeping their memories alive.

[Tonyg26]

Verses of love to hero father
"The Last Alarm," a poem written and read by Angela Meyran, 11, daughter of FDNY Lt. Curtis Meyran (right), who was killed in a Bronx fire a year ago yesterday:
My father was a firefighter
He rode in a big red truck
And when he'd go to work each night
He'd say, "Mom, wish me luck"
And Dad would not come home again till sometimes the next day
A fireman's life is easy
He eats and sleeps and plays
And sometimes he [doesn't] fight fires for days and days and days
When I first heard these comments, I was too young to understand
Because I knew when the people had trouble, Dad was there to lend a hand
And my father went to work one day and he kissed us all goodbye
Little did we know that next morning we'd all cry
My father gave his life that next day when the fire got too hot
And we wondered why he'd risk his life for someone he didn't know
But now I realize the greatest gift a man can give is to lay down his life down upon the line so that someone else might live
So as we go on from day to day and we pray to God above, say a prayer for your brothers. They may save your loved ones.

Originally published on January 24, 2006

[E40FDNYL35]

January 25, 2006 -- Tears pouring down her face, JoAnn Sclafani-Asch read a letter yesterday to her heroic brother, a firefighter killed a year ago on Black Sunday. "Rich, you have made Mommy and Daddy very proud," Firefighter Richard Sclafani's sister told a packed Brooklyn firehouse during a plaque dedication ceremony to honor the anniversary of his death. "You are a true hero and gave the ultimate sacrifice," the 34-year-old Staten Island mother of three wept. "We will always love you and we will never forget."
Sclafani perished in the basement of a burning East New York house on Jan. 23, 2005, the same day two firefighters died in the Bronx after jumping 50 feet to escape a hellish blaze. It was the the deadliest day for the FDNY since 9/11. Following yesterday's tribute, Sclafani's family again urged Mayor Bloomberg and city officials to devote more money to the FDNY. His loved ones have quietly donated $1,500 to Ladder 103 since his death to help buy better equipment. "I just wish they would do more while the guys are alive," Sclafani's mother, Joan, said moments after Bloomberg put his hand on her shoulder to comfort her. "What I would like them to do is give the guys what they deserve," she said. "They should protect them today." Sclafani was remembered as a gutsy, 10-year veteran who died doing what he loved most. The 37-year-old bodybuilder had transferred to Ladder 103, one of the busiest in the nation, shortly before his death because his former house, Squad 18 in Greenwich Village, was too idle. "He wanted to do more. He wasn't happy that he wasn't going to enough fires," said Uniformed Firefighters Association President Stephen Cassidy, who once worked with Sclafani.
Fire officials said Sclafani died after losing his oxygen mask and getting trapped on a cellar staircase - possibly after his gear snagged a coatrack. It took 22 minutes for firefighters to pull him out. The Bronx firefighters killed the same day, Lt. Curtis Meyran and Lt. John Bellew, were honored in a ceremony Monday at the headquarters of Engine 46/Ladder 27. Bloomberg said yesterday that a block in Astoria, Queens, where Sclafani grew up will be named after him. The mayor then addressed the slain firefighter's mom. "There's nothing anybody could ever say that will bring back your son ... but people do remember," Bloomberg said. "People will miss him. People are grateful for the sacrifice that he made." Sclafani's sister hopes the city's gratefulness will mean more money for the Bravest. "The irony is that they're supposed to save lives, but if it costs too much money, they're not going to provide them with the proper equipment," she said.

[pwrstrkinsmketr]

the tour from hell.......... couldnt wait for the 1800 roll call. RIP, Brothers

[Dickey]

I remember watching it on the news thinking "not again."
Very sad day.

RIP

[Pipeman2]

GOD Bless the Brother's Lt. Curtis Meyran B-26
Fr. John Bellew L-27
Fr. Richie Sclafani L-103
And Your Families

NEVER FORGOTTEN!

RFB
Box 8087