Firemen's Prayer
When I am called to duty, God,
Whenever Flames may rage,
give me strength to save some life
whatever be its age. before it is to late,
or save an old person
from the horror of that fate.
Enable me to be alert
and hear the weakest shout.
to quickly and efficiently
put the fire out.
I want to fill my calling
and to give the best in me,
to guard my every neighbor
and protect his property.
And if according to my fate ....
I am to lose my life,
please bless with your protecting hand
my children and my wife.
Author Unknown
Thomas Foley, 32, West Nyack, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
David Fontana, 37, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Robert J. Foti, 42, Albertson, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Andrew Fredericks, 40, Suffern, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Peter L. Freund, 45, Westtown, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas Gambino, 48, Babylon, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Charles William Garbarini, 44, Pleasantville, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas A. Gardner, 39, Oceanside, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Matthew David Garvey, 37
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Bruce Gary, 51, Bellmore, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Gary Geidel, New York, N.Y.
firefighter , New York Fire Department
Reported missing, World Trade Center, at/in building
Denis P. Germain, 33, Tuxedo Park, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Vincent Francis Giammona, 40, Valley Stream, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
James A. Giberson, 43, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Ronnie Gies, 43, Merrick, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Paul John Gill, 34, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. John F. Ginley, 37, Warwick, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Jeffrey Giordano, 46, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
John Giordano, 46, Newburgh, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Keith Alexander Glascoe, 38, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
James Michael Gray, 34, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Jose A. Guadalupe, 37, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Geoffrey E. Guja, 47, Lindenhurst, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Joseph Gullickson, 37, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
David Halderman, 40, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Vincent Gerard Halloran, 43, North Salem, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Robert Hamilton, 43, Washingtonville, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Sean Hanley, 35, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas Hannafin, 36, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Dana Hannon, 29, Suffern, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Daniel Harlin, 41, Kent, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Harvey L. Harrell, 49, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Stephen Gary Harrell, 44, Warwick, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Capt. Thomas Theodore Haskell, 37, Massapequa, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Timothy Haskell, 34, Seaford, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Capt. Terence S. Hatton, 41, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Michael Helmut Haub, 34, Roslyn Heights, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Philip Hayes, 67, Northport, N.Y.
fire safety director, OCS Security
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Michael K. Healey, 42, East Patchogue, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
John Heffernan, 37, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Ronnie Lee Henderson, 52, Newburgh, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Joseph P. Henry, 25, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
William Henry, 49, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas Hetzel, 33, Elmont, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Capt. Brian Hickey, New York, N.Y.
firefighter , New York Fire Department
Reported missing, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Timothy Higgins, 43, Farmingville, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Jonathan R. Hohmann, 48, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas P. Holohan, 36, Chester, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Joseph G. Hunter, 31, South Hempstead, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Capt. Walter Hynes, 46, Belle Harbor, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Jonathan Lee Ielpi, 29, Great Neck, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Capt. Frederick Ill, 49, Pearl River, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
William Johnston, 31, North Babylon, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Andrew Jordan, 35, Remsenburg, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Karl Henri Joseph, 25, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Anthony Jovic, 39, Massapequa, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Angel Luis Juarbe, 35, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
The Rev. Mychal Judge, 68, New York, N.Y.
fire chaplain, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Vincent D. Kane, 37, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Paul Hanlon Keating, 38, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Richard John Kelly, 50, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas Richard Kelly, 38, River Head, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas W. Kelly, 51, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas J. Kennedy, 36, Islip Terrace, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Ronald T. Kerwin, 42, Levittown, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Michael Kiefer, 26, Hempstead, N.Y.
firefighter , New York Fire Department
Reported missing, World Trade Center, at/in building
Robert King, 36, Bellerose Terrace, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Scott Kopytko, 32, Oakland Gardens, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
William Krukowski, 36, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Kenneth Kumpel, 42, Cornwall, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas Joseph Kuveikis, 48, Carmel, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
David LaForge, 50, Port Richmond, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
William David Lake, 44, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Robert T. Lane, 28, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Peter J. Langone, 41, Roslyn Heights, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Scott Larsen, New York, N.Y.
firefighter , New York Fire Department
Reported missing, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Joseph Gerard Leavey, 45, Pelham, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Neil Leavy, 34, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Daniel F. Libretti, 43, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Robert Thomas Linnane, 33, West Hempstead, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Michael F. Lynch, 33, New Hyde Park, N.Y.
firefighter, Ladder 4, New York Fire Department
Reported missing, World Trade Center, at/in building
Michael Francis Lynch, 30, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, Engine 40, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Michael J. Lyons, 32, Hawthorne, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Patrick Lyons, 34, South Setauket,, NY
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Joseph Maffeo, 30, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
William Mahoney, 38, Bohemia, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Joseph E. Maloney, 46, Farmingville, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Charles Joseph Margiotta, 44, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Kenneth Joseph Marino, 40, Monroe, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
John Marshall, 35, Congers, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Peter Martin, 43, Miller Place, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. Paul Richard Martini, 37, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Joseph A. Mascali, 44, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Keithroy Maynard, 30, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Robert J. Mayo, 46, Morganville, N.J.
fire safety director, OCS Security
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Brian McAleese, 36, Baldwin, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Reported dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
John McAvoy, 47, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Thomas McCann, 46, Manalapan, N.J.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Lt. William E. McGinn, 43, New York, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Dennis P. McHugh, 34, Sparkill, N.Y.
firefighter, New York Fire Department
Confirmed dead, World Trade Center, at/in building
Firefighter's Wish...I Wish You Could See
I wish you could know what it is like to
search a burning bedroom for trapped
children, flames rolling above your head,
your palms and knees burning as you
crawl, the floor sagging under your weight
as the kitchen below you burns.
I wish you could comprehend a wife's
horror at 3 in the morning as I check her
husband of 40 years for a pulse and find
none. I start CPR anyway, hoping to bring
him back, knowing intuitively it is too late.
But wanting his wife and family to know
everything possible was done to try to save his life.
I wish you knew the unique smell of
burning insulation, the taste of soot-filled mucus,
the feeling of intense heat through your turnout gear,
the sound of flames crackling, the eeriness of
being able to see absolutely nothing in dense
smoke-sensations that I've become too familiar with.
I wish you could understand how it feels to
go to work in the morning after having
spent most of the night, hot and
soaking wet at a multiple alarm.
I wish you could read my mind as I respond
to a building fire "Is this a false alarm or a
working fire? How is the building
constructed? What hazards await me? Is
anyone trapped?" Or to an EMS call,
"What is wrong with the patient? Is it
minor or life-threatening? Is the caller really in
distress or is he waiting for us with a 2x4 or a gun?"
I wish you could be in the emergency room
as a doctor pronounces dead the beautiful
five-year old girl that I have been trying to
save during the past 25 minutes. Who will
never go on her first date or say the
words, "I love you Mommy" again.
I wish you could know the frustration I feel
in the cab of the engine, squad, or my
personal vehicle, the driver with his foot
pressing down hard on the pedal, my arm
tugging again and again at the air horn
chain, as you fail to yield the right-of-way
at an intersection or in traffic.
When you need us however, your first
comment upon our arrival will be,
"It took you forever to get here!"
I wish you could know my thoughts as I
help extricate a girl of teenage years from
the remains of her automobile. "What if
this was my sister, my girlfriend or a
friend? What were her parents reaction
going to be when they opened the door to
find a police officer with hat in hand?"
I wish you could know how it feels to walk
in the back door and greet my parents and
family, not having the heart to tell them
that I nearly did not come back from the last call.
I wish you could know how it feels
dispatching an officers, fireman and EMT's
out and when we call for them and our
heart drops because no one answers back
or to here a bone chilling 911 call of a
child or wife needing assistance.
I wish you could feel the hurt as people
verbally, and sometimes physically, abuse
us or belittle what I do, or as they express
their attitudes of "It will never happen to me."
I wish you could realize the physical,
emotional and mental drain or missed
meals, lost sleep and forgone social activities,
in addition to all the tragedy my eyes have seen.
I wish you could know the brotherhood and
self-satisfaction of helping save a life or
preserving someone's property, or being
able to be there in time of crisis, or
creating order from total chaos.
I wish you could understand what it feels
like to have a little boy tugging at your
arm and asking, "Is Mommy okay?" Not
even being able to look in his eyes without
tears from your own and not knowing what
to say. Or to have to hold back a long time
friend who watches his buddy having
rescue breathing done on him as they take
him away in the ambulance. You know all
along he did not have his seat belt on. A
sensation that I have become too familiar with.
Unless you have lived with this kind of life,
you will never truly understand or
appreciate who I am, we are, or what our
job really means to us...I wish you could though.
Author Unknown
The Creation of the Fire Fighter
When the Lord was creating fire fighters, he was into his sixth
day of overtime when an angel appeared and said, "You're
doing a lot of fiddling around on this one." And the Lord said,
"Have you read the specification on this person? Fire fighters
have to be able to go for hours fighting fires or tending to a person that
the usual everyday person would never touch, while putting in the
back of their minds the circumstances. They have to be able to
move at a second's notice and not think twice of what they are
about to do, no matter what danger. They have to be in top
physical condition at all times, running on half-eaten meals,
and they just have six pairs of hands."
The angel shook her head slowly and said, "Six pairs of
hands...no way." "It's not the hands that are causing me
problems," said the Lord, "it's the three pairs of eyes a fire
fighter has to have."
"That's on the standard model?" asked the angel.
The Lord nodded. "One pair to see through the fire and where
they and their fellow fire fighters should fight the fire next.
Another pair here in the side of the head to see their fellow
fire fighters and keep them safe. And another pair of eyes
in the front so that they can look for the victims
caught in the fire who need their help."
"Lord," said the angel, touching his sleeve, "rest and work
on this tomorrow."
"I can't," said the Lord, "I already have a model that can
carry a
250-pound man down a flight of stairs to safety from a burning
building, and can feed a family of five on a civil service paycheck."
The angel circled the model of the fire fighter very slowly,
"Can it think?"
"You bet," said the Lord. "They can tell you the elements
of a
hundred fires and can recite procedures in their sleep that
are needed to care for a person until they reach the
hospital. And all the while they have to keep their wits about them.
Fire fighters also have phenomenal personal control. They can
deal with a scene full of pain and hurt, coaxing a child's
mother into letting go of the child so that they can care for
the child in need. And still they rarely get the recognition for a
job well done from anybody, other than from fellow fire fighters."
Finally, the angel bent over and ran her finger across the
cheek of the fire fighter."There's a leak," she pronounced.
"Lord, it's a tear. What's the tear for?"
"It's a tear from bottled-up emotions for fallen comrades. A
tear for commitment to that funny piece of cloth called the
American flag. It's a tear for all the pain and suffering they
have encountered. And it's a tear for their commitment
to caring for and saving lives of their fellow man!"
"What a wonderful feature. Lord, you're a genius," said the angel.
The Lord looked somber and said, "I didn't put it there."
Author Unknown
The Last Alarm
My father was fireman.
He drove a big red truck
and when he'd go to work each day
he'd say, "Mother wish me luck."
Then Dad would not come home again
'til sometime the next day.
But the thing that bothered me the most
was the thing's some folks would say,
"A fireman's life is easy,
he eats and sleeps and plays,
and sometimes he wont fight a fire
for days and days."
When I first heard these words
I was young to understand
but I knew when people had trouble
Dad was there to lend a hand.
then my father went to work one day
and kissed us all goodbye
but little did we realizes
that night we all would cry.
My father lost his life that night
when the floor gave way below
and I'd wondered why he'd risk his life
for someone he did not know.
But not I truly realize
the greatest gift a man can give
is to lay his life upon the line
so that someone else might live.
So as we go from day to day
and we pray to God above
say a prayer for your local fireman.
He may save the one's you love.
Author Unknown
FDNY firefighter Michael Moran words to
Osama bin Laden
at benefit Concert for New York.
"Kiss my royal Irish ass!"
Sound file from FireHouse.com
