Off-Duty FDNY Firefighter Rescues Family, but Loses Home
An off-duty FDNY firefighter helped rescue his family and neighbors from a five-alarm blaze that destroyed his Brooklyn home late Saturday.
The fire broke out just before midnight in the Dyker Heights section of Brooklyn, the New York Post reports. The blaze started in firefighter Piotr Orlowski's home before spreading to two other houses.
Orlowski, who has been a firefighter since 2016 and serves with Engine 202 in Red Hook, was able to help his sister and Polish-immigrant parents escape the fire. He also got the family dog and his neighbors to safety.
“He got them out of their own apartment, and then he even helped next door,” Patricia Ciurej, whose sister has dated Orlowski for a decade, told the Post. “He ran into the first floor back apartment where there’s a man. He’s like 90 years old. He literally carried him out himself, without gear or nothing.”
More than 200 FDNY firefighters responded to the call. Twelve firefighters were injured battling the intense blaze, but their injuries weren't considered life-threatening., according to the department.
A GoFundMe page has been set up for Orlowski, 33, and his family, who lived in the Brooklyn home for 20 years. So far, the campaign has raised more than $33,900.