Nicholas Scoppetta, the former FDNY commissioner has died after a long illness. He was 83.
Scoppetta was named commissioner after Sept. 11 attacks by then Mayor Michael Bloomberg and held the title from 2002 to 2010, according to a news report from abc7ny.com.
Prior to being named commissioner, he ran the Administration for Children’s Services for former mayor Rudolph Giuliani.
Current Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement that Scoppetta was a “dedicated and brilliant civil servant” who led “FDNY through its darkest days.”
Bloomberg, the man who appointed him as fire commissioner said he was “forever grateful for his leadership” after the attacks.
“Nick did an extraordinary job guiding the department through that painful time, rebuilding it, and leading it to new heights,” Bloomberg said in a statement. “Under his leadership New York City was safer from fires than ever before in its history.”
Giuliani called Scoppetta an “honest and good man” who could be trusted and was well liked.
“I thought it was an ingenious choice by Mike Bloomberg to pick him,” Giuliana said in a statement. “The Fire Department needed a guy with empathy, understood psychology, much more than a guy who could fight fires. They got 11,000 people who can fight fires."
In a statement, Scoppetta’s family said they are saddened by the passing of their father after a long illness that he had fought bravely. The statement said they were proud of his service and his accomplishments. They particularly said they were proud of “his devotion to rebuilding the devastated FDNY after 9/11.”
“His contributions are immeasurable,” the statement said. “To all of his endeavors he gave himself fully, with a devotion and passion commensurate with the love and support he had as a husband, father and grandfather. We miss him - and we always will.”
