You're listening to the Getting Salty Experience podcast. Hello in the chat Tonay,
baby, that's what I'm gonna do. Pick somebody out because you fed me
that thing that we loaded up. Bid it work today? I was?
I was? But anyway, welcome back. Yeah, you're gonna play it
play. No, I'm not God. You can do your things. I
don't want to. Welcome back to the Getting Salty Spears podcast. It's the
one that truly cross my heart. Hope to die. Stick a picky in
my eye brings the firehouse kitchen table to you. There might be other guys
that say it. I'm just saying it might be, they might not be.
I don't know, but there really is only one. You know.
Did you ever get a callback from that? I did? We were funny,
now, all right? I told the guy I loved him. Don't
take it personal. You know, I'm a dick and I'm gonna say whatever
I'm gonna say. So we made up. We do really like him.
I do like the guy a lot. Yeah, but anyway, there is
only one. Like there's only one Elvis Presley, right, I mean,
there's only one Beatles. You gotta be if you're the king, the King,
right, and there's only one podcast that brings the firehouse kitchen table to
you. That's what I'm gonna say about that. That's all you got.
Welcome back, Roof, Thank you, buddy. You didn't kill anything,
but your friend did. My friend got a nice one. I got a
six point. You passed on it, six six point. What are you
gonna do with that? Bro? This point points? There was six points
on the picture, all right, there was six points seven points. I
don't know like Roof at this point in his career. Bro, he's like
six point send you send your father backyard, Bro, go get your I
always heard it work today. What now he's back on his game? Last
week he was taking That's what he was, bro. But what did you
see? A couple of jumbles and that was it. I couldn't concentrate,
dude, I don't know what the fun was going on. He wasn't concentrated.
I had to ask for the sound effects, and then when I asked,
he still wasn't doing it. I'm like, well, she was a
couple of money and I couldn't get too quick enough to remember when you called
him. I want to have him right there. We were beyond the next
topic, he py, Yeah, exactly, So I couldn't play because you
moved along too quick, So I can't. Yeah, well he's got ten
ft taller. I think I think that he was. He's not afraid because
lou wasn't there. He knows Louise. He's got to slap making me laugh.
Yeah, here we go. That's why he's on his game tonight.
But I can't get it again. I won't. We played that quick.
I heard it work today. I don't know. Well, definitely, all
right, so we got our man finally standing man live a hand. Let
me just say this. Me and Louis have said this in the past,
so I'm gonna say it again. Well, we were in the squad working
with the has Matt. We thought we were the fucking cat's pajamas bro like
right, so we would look at guys pajamas on the job. Yeah,
we had five years that we look at guys like fucking hazmat what a fucking
loser, while guys like Chief Fanning, who were in twenty six truck I
d back, Yeah, who was in two seventeen engine, three point thirty
two engine you know, made a grab and rescue too. Yeah, we
thought we were it. Meanwhile, you have no idea what you're staring across,
you know, at when you walk into a place. So it's best
to keep your stupid thoughts to yourself. You know what's going on? Was
it? Hey, you're talking to my guy all wrong? It's wrong again?
Did you imagine this guy? Bro? Like you've been to places we
come in, we think, who the fuck? We look at these little
snot nose green. There's no doubt we have to ask, no doubt thinking
like you little wine and bitches. There was no doubt that he had the
word douche bag, like right here, you know, guy's a douche,
douche guy's a Karen, Karen? Yeah, what's anyway? What's really quick?
What's the mail equivalent to when you call it? Karen? It's a
guy? What do they call a guy? I don't know. Does anybody
know what it is? Somebody in the church probably gonna know. I'm sure
I'll give you a quick story. So I'm pulling out a fucking stopping shop
the other day and some old lady, she's got to be my mother's age
eighty five. She comes out, but there's a guy coming and he's probably
our age, maybe a little older. Now, this motherfucker pulls right up
and instead of fucking there's plenty of room to go round, of course,
buck up, buck up. He gets out, screaming at the old lady.
Back up. She's like, why should you go round? Back up?
He looks at me like like I'm gonna agree with him right after he's
berating some old brood, So she finally backs up. I thought she was
gonna kill somebody. Backing up in the middle of a park a lot.
He pulls out. I pull out and like the next four lights, I'm
like, so, I fucking say something to this guy. Should just mind
my own fucking business. You can't, you can't, I really can't.
I get to the fourth light. Now I'm not only that, I'm never
so I'm with him, bro right. They called him Kevin, whis patty
nice till he said I called the guy pull up to him and I go
to him. Are you happy with yourself? Now? Do you feel like
a you feel better about yourself? That's my favorite life. He's like,
well yeah. I pulled him back up, like you have plenty of rule
to go around up and he called me something I didn't know what I had
to be the maybe Kevin right, I said, well, you're a fucking
dick man cursing so much. We're on a rating some all broad. If
you feel good about yourself, go ahead. It was definitely a time.
Was the Italian. I couldn't tell what he was. He was mad,
I can tell you that. So he must have been Italian. Must have
been like lou light switch flip flew. And that was it. You come
on, stop it, all right? So go ahead, guy, let's
get done with the commercial. So I'm done. Told it about myself,
all right? Let's hear from New Jersey Fire. Established in nineteen thirty and
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That's www Dot nj f E dot com. At Jimmy de Guinea.
He's a good guy, right rough whatever. Jimmy Guiny hooks me up all
the time. They talked about a guy who doesn't have a temper in his
body, right for an Italian guy. No, it's cool easy Brandon is
the one brand. He's no hit. Maybe he called me that maybe,
and he never hesitates to his pocket. That's Jimmy great guy, love him
good stuff, got good guys working for him too. Yeah for sure,
Get right to the next one, John Sue can get Doug guess in here,
please, all right, here we go. It is a book that
will perhaps go down as the report from mentioned Company eighty two of our Generation,
They Saved New York. Written by Glenn Huston and Dan Potter, retired
New York City firefighter, explores the many women of the FD and Y and
their respective journeys into the department. From everyone from firefighters on the fire floor
to those who were positions of command such as lieutenant and Captain in chief and
so on and so forth. This book explores their stories told through their perspectives.
Each story differs, but the mission is the same and the common theme
is this those that put their lives in the line to save their fellow New
Yorker, no matter the cost, no matter the situation, whenever they were
in need. Get your hands on this book today. You will not regret
it. Written by once again retire New York City firefighter Dan Potter and the
concept of photography provided by the one and only lennas that a member of the
fire Belt Club in New York City. They Saved New York, the men
and women of the FDN Y. If you'd like to purchase the book,
you can do so. And they saved and why dot Com? That is
again ww dot they saved and why dot Com? Excellent, excellent. I
want to see to nitwith who actually made it into the book that really have
no business being in the book. Come see me and Louis. I don't
know if whole he's going. I'm going, uh, pull out up guns.
We'll be signing the books along with everybody. I don't know, everybody
but the guys in the book all going out to the Joey d They Saved
New York book signing. We greet some of the firefighters featured in Dan Potter's
newly released Highlighting the corn Fire Department. Corn Fire Department, November fourth to
twenty three at seven p m. Come out and see. Tickets are twenty
dollars. It's food and drinks and raffles. Can't go wrong. Coops will
not be drinking. I will not. I'll be with my wife. After
my wife is coming. I think my little guys are coming to I don't
know. So that's it. Let's get him in here. Rough do you
think? Are you ready? Yeah? I'm ready. You ready to go.
I'm ready coming to the stage. Lieutenants standing man right back, Blue?
What's up, little boy? Look, you know us, way back
we were thatt you could say it douchebags. Right, we came in the
firehouse, you know, like our little brothers, annoying everybody in the has
meat. Yeah, we'll talk about what that. The whole dynamic was like
when we came in later on. But before we do, let's get patriotic.
Before I forget it. We rush on. Okay, here we go.
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to
the Republic, for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with
liberty and justice for all. A more quick thing. God's pull up that
thing. What it's like at Louis House and Halloween. This came from my
boy Bill only one a gubba ghoule per child. That's not bad. I
can't take credit for them. I'm all all right. Let's get into lieutenant's
career. Lou take us back way back. Tell us where you grew up,
what got you into the fire service? A little about the early life
of Lieutenant's Dead. Right back, let's see. Grew up in East Meadow
of Long Island. Uh, two brothers, two sisters, my father.
What's that? Where are you? Well, I'm a twin. Actually I
didn't know that. That's twins. Things you find out on this show.
And myself and Michael, my brother Michael were born, my brother Stephen,
who was a county prower, county fireman. And my sister. Oh forgot
my sister Carol, I said, and uh a Marie. So five of
us, Yeah, not bad East Medal. My father was a bricklayer.
My whole family were bricklayers or probably carpenters. You know, it's work when
I did every day I was off of work bricklaying with my uncle. Is
that right? Uh? Well, even we grew up, we were to
go, get to make the cement, get the bricks. You know,
that's what you had to do. It's hard work, man, It's the
good, honest day's work bricklayer. We learned a lot. Hey, I
was able to build, you know, help build my house really so yeah,
well I did all the footings. We did a bunch of extensions,
some footings. You were like, what else can I do because this ain't
working for me. For the next one, I figure, let me be
a fireman. You know what made you want to be a fireman? You
have any friends or you know what? My father was a volunteer fireman along
with my uncle probably three uncles, uh in North Belmore. One was East
Meadow but close by North North Belmore. And uh but I never joined the
volleys because by time college came around, I moved. We moved to Florida,
Pompao Beach, Florida. Whole family, Yeah, the whole family moved.
Yeah. But uh we had a nice big house in the in the
East Meadow and my father had built the day. Bro, you sent me
that one, right, No you didn't. Now you're on the game,
thank you. And uh you know so, Uh I really I took actually
test went to college for criminal justice, and uh, I didn't even think
about being a fireman. And UH did well on a couple of tests.
Court offices didn't make it with the state troopers. My good friend made it
with the state troopers, so he did well. But uh, court offices
came up. I didn't take it because I visited them. I just took
the physical for the fire Department because my uncle, my uncle Angelo from one
twenty four said you got to just take the test. You know, we
got to picture him, don't we see? It's yeah here he is there.
It is no a volunteer fireman North Belmore. Oh so he knows Heavy
d and those guys who were who's at cat Murphy? Yeah? Sure,
good friends with Dennis. Yeah so he was he was he there with Patty
Lee. Yes. I said, you got to get him on the show.
Bro that on twenty four group was great, great fires And he looks
like, h what's his name? Bro from U that's another Gonzo Gonzo looks
like yeah, yeah yeah, now's one lesson for old time steak. Yeah
maybe yeah. So you know, I I went down to Florida, figured
I'd become a cop or something, but came back up and did well on
the on the physical. Uh, it was a hot tant. I say
that all the time. That was a real hard test. That was lucky.
I was still young, you know, working out, you know,
running all the time. Just got done playing some of lacrosse down in Florida
a little bit, you know. Uh, they didn't really have big leagues
down there, but we had club club sports down there, you know then,
right, and so we're still in shape, you know, did some
running. But U now, were you still in school when you moved to
Florida in high school? I started college in seventy college in Florida. I
tried Miami Dade. I didn't really like it, so I moved back up
to Popito Beach and went to Broward Community College. All right, yeah,
so then I then I just came back up moved in with my grandparents in
East Meadow, Italian grandparents. How good was that? Right? I did
my laundry, she cooked for me, grandma, and that it was great,
you know, in the pasta on Sundays. I love them. Sure,
that was good time. So what was that your mom's your mother's That
was my mother's side. Yeah, Agelo's actually uncle Angelo's mother and father.
What was the last name, Catalano? Oh? Yeah, So you go
up and stay with them. You take the FD test because Angelo I did
well. I would have done better except I missed the last page on the
test. I missed like three questions. Hasn't missed them altogether. He just
didn't miss them all together. I didn't turn over to you, didn't turn
the last page. So, but my list number was pretty good. I
think I got hearted. You know, what was it like eighteen twenty four,
So I did pretty well. I magine if I got the three questions
right, have been up there. But that's my I was always a like
the seventies type of guy. You know, as long as I passed,
that's all I cared about. Same certificate. You still get on that right
exactly? You know, well in this case, Yeah, tried that on
me when he was going to Saint John's. You goes C's and D still
get degrees and like not in Saint John's they don't pro so get your ass
over, get your ass over the community college, bro season D still get
the greed. That's what we don't. Yeah, not on my dive.
They don't pro as as you're hitting them with the two by four. But
you go. You gotta see the old star listening in probably school here.
Rough you're a great prob school bunch of guys. You know. January tenth,
we got swim in I think on the eighth, and we reported in
on the tenth. January eighty one. Wow, look at these guys.
You got Beatles was in this picture the guys. You don't have to give
them credit to Danny Murph. I think for the picture, Danny Murphy was
in his class in the middle of the first row. I see him,
Holy, look at him, he's a goliath. How about Mike Espo Mike
Guess is the second from the Yeah, I look at that right. Yes,
you had Rotten Lacacus Stackpole in here too, right. Who's that Stackpole
you had, yeah, Timmy Stackpole, Espositos, Jack Ome, Oh,
a bunch of guys. Wow. Yeah, it was good class. You
had to who's who in your class? Broke class? What is that one
hundred guys? Yeah, it wasn't that many. Yeah, because there wasn't
a night class. It was just a single, you know, morning class.
Maybe a hundred. Who's the Mama Luke onstage swearing in? That's uh?
Is that Hines? Commissioner Hines? Oh is it? Yeah? Joe
Hines? Yeah all right, yeah. Yeah. So well it was very
cold over there when we were there in January and February. Boy, very
cold, like zero degrees ten degrees coming over the bridge. But we got
through it, through it and uh, how many weeks back? How many
weeks was it back then? I think it was five six weeks, but
we also had to stay in there. At the last week, they told
us we had to stay an extra week because we had to learn fire prevention
and then go out and do fire prevention. So we didn't go right to
the companies. Yeah, yeah, So so who would have thunk what would
have happened later on in your career, right, yeah, yeah, Well
it catches up to me again. You get promoted though, yeah, you
get promoted. Promoted. Ry was it was frozen in February when it was
three degrees. We had a couple of those nights, you know. So
you find out you go into Engine Company nine to ohero. Huh where is
ninety engine? I had no idea where the Bronx was except for the Bronx
Zoo, And luckily enough, it was right around the corner from the Bronx
Zou. Is it the one that's right around the corner from the Yeah,
the that was the at the time. It was all Italian over there and
on White Plains Road and Morris Park Avenue nineteen forty one. Very it was
a slow house at the time. It was the ninth Division. The deputies
were upstairs on the third floor, very big house. Yeah right, you
know, bochi bowl courts around the corner. A lot of battalions over there,
but we'll stick ball back in the Yeah, none of the stickballs.
It was a nice show over there. Good, it was good, good
being. Yeah. But when I got there, the chief said, Sam,
you got to get out of here. We had who was it,
Mike Meyer's dad, uh huh McLachlan, a chief McLachlan, a chief Cleary,
you know, good old chiefs. But they got me upstairs and they
said, you're gonna do your time here, and uh, within a year,
you're gonna get out of here. I said, Chief, I was
supposed to go to two seventeen, but they said, shut up, don't
tell anybody. I can't say that, And uh, what us about that
story I was supposed to go to. Supposedly I had a contract with h
with my uncle through Jimmy Boyle. Jimmy Boyle you know, was big then
back then. But uh, how did it work out? I guess you
could say Tony var really I know, yeah he was on the show.
Yeah, No, Tony's a good man to seventeen guy. He left I
think sixty seven. Uh, engine at the time when I was supposed to
get a sign and uh, but he didn't. Something happened with the captain.
So Tony got the points. Tony went there and I did it.
So they sent me to ninety engine. They said, Tony, you screwed
me before I knew you. They want to drive the drive. But it
worked out pretty good. You know, I had a good time there.
Let me ask you question, how do they know that you need to get
out of it like you were just like I guess they knew, they knew
it was slow, they knew, you know, it was a slower area.
It was just yeah, but how do they know it in you?
Like you're always kicking the tools always. I don't know. Maybe they I
don't know, speak it out. Yeah, you know, you know the
guys just the first Proby there in like nine or ten years. Really,
I was going to say it, how to be a senior house. It
was the overtime was screwed, you know, what was going through the roof.
So they needed to get a lot of Proby's, I think in that
battalion which was about the uh they were in with sixty seven engine at the
time. Watch sixty one now, But who was that battalion, Uh,
that whole battalion, nine engine, seventy three, ninety seven engine. They
were all you know, niceer areas, slower a little bit, but all
those places they are running now right, I know ninety forty one is uh
is it supposed to be a great house, you know. As far as
even work it was with thirty some years thirty forty, Yeah it was.
It was a good time there. I learned a lot. Yeah, I
got a I can't say I got a lot of work there, but uh,
we got a couple of jobs there. We had a good fire there,
well not for a couple of guys who got hurt pretty bad. But
where's the picture with the we had a picture from this guy. It should
be uh a fireman Jack Kreeger Creeden. He got hurt pretty bad. We
had a we run I think Krueger revenue and uh, oh that's that's you.
That's the one I have from ninety in the Yeah, nice package.
Then that's that's the Beatles cover. Brother man, I want another guy in
front. How he got them Shuret's off totally. He jumped into them.
Bro. That's John Fantasy. Another Proby that's to the left, but he's
on the bed. We made a bed, we had a roll. The
guy gets in the bed and we had a race down the block. Oh
my god, next to me is Mike Guardino, John Fantasy to my in
front of me. That's freaking awesome. Yeah. Yeah, so that was
a benefit for I forget who it was. Okay, that's what I had
mark for ninety engine. Let me see if I have some Yeah, that
was ninety engine and should add another one with the there's a guy laying down
taking care of by a couple of guys. Oh, you're talking about that.
We had a he was laying on the ground and it was you know,
take they were trying to take care of him. You think about No,
that's Brooklyn, Get out of him, Brooklyn. What did you do?
Did you label anything for? Yeah? I don't really get it.
Come on, I'll start the story. Pete. You some of them,
bitch man, like a five story tenement with retail stores on the bottom,
and uh, maybe it's your little collage. Is it any collage? Yeah?
The scissor gates that were on the front of the store and they had
the big showrooms on both sides of the doorway, and uh, they were
forcing the door, just the gate outside and I and I remember waiting to
have the line there and uh, a crack came right down the window the
whole big pain you know, like the paint of glasses like ten by ten.
Yeah, and uh and I think I got enough oxygen in where we
had a back drift and it blew us all like passed. There was the
sidewalks like twelve feet long, twelve feet wide, and it blew us all
over the cars, like way over the park cars. That ain't sorry,
sorry, sorry, that's all right. Yeah, that's the only one that
I have marked ninety engine. I mean I went through the black and whites
that we have, so you go through your little collage of pictures. Yeah,
I didn't want to pull that up. All you guys are there,
but yeah, right, maybe lose God it could hold it up to the
I can't find it. You have it, Pete, I gotta find it.
Give myself a slap. Will you let me dig through what I have
here to see if I missed it, because we if we were, if
we marked it, that's the only thing I marked a specifically night. I'll
put you on the pain on my list right now. You start digging ahead.
That's my fault. Did you had a lot of World War two guys
or Korean War guys there when you got there, You know what I really
like, I said, I was there like almost less than a year or
maybe a year, and you didn't really get to know these guys that well.
Yeah, I came in, I knew somebody. You knew some of
the younger guys, and they were a lot of some of the vets,
you know, Vietnam guy still and but really didn't talk about it, you
know, because I was kind of separated. Actually, I wasn't allowed downstairs
in the basement. They said, Stan, here's your brass, here's your
polish. Yeah, take care of the equipment on the rig, and just
and just look at school. Yeah, I love it. Uh yeah,
that's the way it was. And you know who else was there with me?
Jerry Tracy was he really Jerry Tracy was a ninety engine when I got
there. Jerry, what a good man he was. But some people,
man, yeah, well I think we transferred out the next year. Within
the next year, we were all gone, you know. Me from there,
Jerry went to one hundred and eight into a little bit too. Yeah,
definitely went away. Yeah, they pissed off that you wanted to get
out of it. They kind of understood. No, I don't think so,
you know, I mean it was weird. I don't remember even saying
goodbye almost. You know. It's like, hey, you're on an order.
You got to go to work in Brooklyn, now, okay, goodbye.
Yeah that's the way it was. You know, I talked about this
the photo right here, No, that's Brooklyn. Yes, that's the only
other one. All right. I might have might have messed up on that
one. That's all right. This is for Ganta. My apologies. I've
gone through everything you said. I saw somebody on the ground to put your
paper in. You don't get in the first try, because very Alley focks
you right the second. I know he fucked you from Proby School, Proby
School, going to yeah seventeen, I had wait a year, actually a
year and a half. Who would you call again? Did you call Uncle
Tony? Went? Well, like we made the Hey Jimmy, you know
Jimmy Boyle. Yeah, what's going on? The fixer? Yeah? Well
Jimmy did a lot of work for a lot of guys. You know,
he was a good man. And your first order. You're over to two
seventeen. Yep, over to two seventeen, and it was like another world.
That's a good bye house there, bro, they run in with some
fucking well put that picture up guns, the ones with with all of the
guys in there. Uh do you talk about the black and white? Yeah,
okay, go ahead, stand I'm sorry, No, I mean the
trucks you're running with one O two one oh wait, one eleven was in
the battalion with us, Yeah, one twelve and occasionally one twenty four.
You know, but look at that picture though, it's a lot of good
guy you know what I love too. There's nothing on either side of the
buildings like standing there in the middle of nowhere, right, I mean just
I just looked at that quick and I knew five got Eric Allen's on the
bigger Crooker rule that bigger Higgins. Yeahiggins, Patty a fanus. Bobby A
thanis another guy brow up that Patty Water is another guy who came to Hazball.
Yeah all right, that was a good crew here, Jack Hayden.
That's Pete's brother. Eric was right next to your Patty Waters. Go up
again a little yeah, yeah, yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Higgins was
there, Joey Higgins. Joey Joey beg of donuts. John Clancy, Oh
shit really yeah, Oh I was in right one seven that night. Yeah.
For you guys that don't know, he took one step in a vacant
and he fell through into the basement. Yeah. I think the taraza floor
on that one's staff landing fell through. Yeah. Oh, Bobby a Fantas
too. We gotta thank Bobby a Fantas for the picture. He set this
all up. Whe's cugaroo there he is in the center. Yeah, good
old Mark. He's still on the job right, Yeah, he's the fourteenth
division commander. Now, yeah, who was your captain there when you got
there? Jerry kleinb We called him Flip. That was his nickname throughout.
He always was in that area to wit lieutenant. I think in two eighteen
and uh, we still see each other a lot. I still stay in
with the guys in two seventeen. Not as much as some of these guys,
but uh, in the young guys every February seventeenth. Yeah, there's
a party something that's great. Man. A lot of companies do that.
When we've been doing that, we've been. Uh, I've been going to
all the parties and go to breakfast that has Max. So that's great that
you keep in touch. Man. Yeah, that's good though, But I
give it. I give a lot of credit to the House to seventeen.
They're always together every uh was it nine to eleven? Memorial Day and Christmas.
Certain bunch of guys would go out to all the graves, the grave
sites, really put the reads down through them. Great Man to seventeen continues
to get all that stuff together. You know. Uh, next to me
is Richie Brady. He became a captain like two thirty six. Jerry Klein,
next to Jimmy Boyle. Uh, that's up in front is Jimmy's son.
And you know Charlie Powers right well, I saw him do the thing.
Charlie Powers was in he was a lieutenant one of the squads. Oh
shit, yeah yeah, and Jack Hayden and behind Jackison it was one of
the dispatches. Henny Dingman. He passed away, Uh recently, maybe a
year or so ago. Wow, But we all went up to see Jimmy
Boyle up in Syracuse. How long did it take you to catch your first
job there? You remember at seventeen. I think that was my first night.
I think we had two jobs, three jobs, no shit, but
I remember we went down on it was a job on Decalva Avenue. But
it was weird. Two seventeen only had I think like twenty one first two
boxes, and we would sometimes pass a box no ship that was not our
box to get to another first two box because you had engines two thirty two,
fourteen, thirty five, twenty two and to eighteen coming from different ways,
and to sixteen and one. Eleven was right in the middle of those
sons of bitches. Yeap. When eleven was there were perfect spot man first
seventeen for a single engine brod our work, yeah, and it was great.
We did our work. We didn't do a lot of running, but
uh, I bet you can catch it. Back then, we caught a
job almost once a night, you know, once, very raally. You
didn't have a couple of jobs with out a couple of daturs going by.
Look at those buildings, cool, yeah, yeah, this is right.
This is the one where the corners fell off. Yeah, this was the
one where uh Kenny Conley, I think I have This was the news Caaper's
Gonzo clippings of this one you might have. We can go and scroll through
because this is the the end end of the product. There, Kenny Connley,
we were naturally boots right that one where got knocked out of the boot.
It was a steel door that was on top of the parlor door and
they forced the follow the door off. I had it actually in my hand,
and Kenny says, I got it naturally. I'm in the engine,
he's got the door. He was the chauff for probably that day, so
well I don't know where he was, but anyway, that's it. Oh
was at it? Yeah, that's it. Uh you can see it actually
the corners is coming down before it hits him. Oh wow, what a
great guy. One eleven's bucket and uh yeah it was on Quincy Street,
Sumner in Quincy. So the bucket, the uh, the corners came down
and see how if you can see how Kenny's holding the door, the steel
door. Thank god, it just hit the steel door first. Wow.
Yeah, I could see how that would happen. It would hit that because
it's higher than him there and I'm I'm probably right next to him, and
uh, he got hit with that. And as soon as we heard that.
I turned around and Richie Brady, who was in two seventeen, actually
he was, but detailed to two fourteen. We grabbed him and uh,
you know, took him off the stairs. And that's us. Uh,
and that's the chauffer from two fourteen. I forget his first name. And
what happened with him was he he went to the hospital and uh it was
okay, he you know, got out of it. That's what that's us
grabbing him and straightening him out. You know, still had his helmet on.
Did you stretch the line and put the fire on after that or what
the no was on the backup? Guys? Had it good for you?
Yeah? But yeah, you're right there that you're there, that's me.
Uh yeah, with the bunny rabbit in my helmet. Yeah yeah, I
found that bunny rabbit on Easter Sunday at a job. It was always in
my helmet. Yeah, that's it. We're taking care of Kenny, and
Kenny ended up being you know fine. Gods. Go back to that first
picture, this one which really now the original color is coming down. Oh
okay. The article, yeah, that was the Daily News. I think
you know you noticed look at the fucking Shipthold next door to it had another
picture there that was what it was like back then, right, like,
oh yeah, it's all vacancy. That was Quincy Street too. Yeah,
look at the windows, the old glass windows, regular glass, and it
looked like they just tried to set new ones in. But you know,
right, yeah, I would love to go back to that time in a
busy place like that. The amount of work he caught. And just let
me see that first picture that you had, the color one started yeah on
this on this role. It wasn't on the role it was. But he
when you when the lieutenant said he was in two seventeen, he kept showing
it. He was in ninety and you said, he kept showing that pictures
like oh yeah, now you can't find it. That one, that one,
the one you can't win from ninety engine not only better glasses. I
give a lot of credits to these photographers. Now there was no we didn't
have cell phones back then, right. They were all doing this by scanners
and they were on. Yeah they were there. Man, who is this
the photographer? I mean, look at those buildings, Look at all the
buildings, I know, I mean, Kidney, can you imagine working at
two seventeen. At that time, bro like every day you get you going
to work. So yeah you, I mean, yeah you were lucky.
You were probably pissed if you didn't get a job, you know. But
my first night there, I just remember who was it. Bobby Schaeffer was
in one eleven Old Timer and uh one O two's aerial must have been up
to a window and he, I think, runs up the aerial building.
It's on fire, it's just like that, and jumps into the building and
he's got his jeans on his well I call him dungarees, his boots in
the old dungaree jacket and jumps into the building and I'm like, holy shit.
They do this, yeah every night, kid. That's the way Couples
shot to say. It was the Duke. Is that the duke? That's
Kenny Colly's the duke? Yep, you got the duke on his back.
Crazy had a second section during the Warriors were seventeen. They did, Yeah
they did. I didn't get there for that one, but imagine that.
Imagine that how busy that they were to have the companies have three I think
uh two thirty had the squad think about how crazy that is well, like
you said, they get how many first two boxes you have? I think
twenty one? Yeah, yeah, yeah, I got somebody all about getting
it fast, bro. But uh and every time you went out, uh
you were, you better be on the rig because you have to beat in
two thirty engine or to fourteen. Those were, I mean, and maybe
two twenty two. They were a little bit lower than us towards Broadway.
You had it, you had it. You had to beat them in,
you know, yep. And that's the way it was, you know.
But uh, you know, some guys were walk far from the Bronx right
where oh your first dude, you and the Bronx. Oh my god,
it was so far. Some of these runs were so far too ye.
Yeah. But even if you beat the guy and you're like, oh no
you first do go ahead, No, go ahead, guy, I don't
want to say that. I'm not saying that. No go ahead, Fuck
my sister, don't worry about it. He's like, good, good,
good being there. You know, great company, great house, great guys.
You were therefore was ten years, right, yeah, I think about
nine years. The officers were great. I think the whole time I was
there, we had one captain uh, three lieutenants, and then Brian Sullivan
came. When one of the guys went over with Joe Fitzgerald, it was
another great lieutenant. They're all good fire offices, fantastic fire ropses. Joe
Fitzgerald, though, I got to tell you, he's the type of guy.
You're you're on the ground put having nozzle, putting the fire out,
and the fire goes out, and he's standing up still waiting to have a
cigarette, you know, and the eyes are beat red. Never put his
mask on, you know, because I was in the we were in the
time where we were still trained to the old Scott mask too so, but
then it's finally got to the well, you know, Scott four point fives
were good, but he would never wear his mask. Some of these guys.
Chief Captain Klein would never even give a ten seventy five because he didn't
want the chief sin. We could do it. We got it, guys.
You know I could have used that one. Well we have that was
the picture of the guy who lost his shoes, right, Oh Kenny Conley,
Yeah, is that the picture we're talking about now with the with the
corner So no, no, no, no, well that's a different one.
I'm sorry what you just put up. That was something else. But
the picture of the guy with out of shoes, what was that one?
That's Kenny Conley. That's where the corners fell down, right, So Richie
Doomy could said he wanted he wanted his shoes because old timers would say,
if you didn't have your shoes on your dead ah, he wanted his shoes
because old time. Okay, we got a picture of that gods with him
one of his shoes, out of his shoes. There you go. I
felt I felt bad because at the time, Richie's got the one leg in
which Reagan his other leg. You know, Oh, guys, still me
a favor. I was telling Kevin, see that the p D guy.
Yes, all right, remember that face because when we go to the face
on the thumbnail that I made Gary the next job, I think it's the
same. I would think. I think it is Dan because I could see
his face because I put that together today when I was making the show to
put and I think that's his face in the car, like right by the
car window with his tie. Look at him, he's got his shoes on.
Yeah. So are we talking about the gravy made R two that one,
yes, okay, let's talk about that one. Then you get detailed
to A two. Yeah. Well, being that rescue was didn't have there
wasn't sock at the top, and uh, they were in the fire.
They went over from Calton Street and they went over to Dean Street, and
uh there was the five seven Battalion, considered the five seven battalion, so
when there's manning, you know, they were down, they called the five
seven battalion. So they called and uh, I think on that day I
had a it was the Proby. Richie Brady was the proby at the time.
They didn't send Proby's out. Well we didn't send probs out either,
but they weren't going to take a probate at rescue too, so I went
and uh, you know, it just turned out to be uh a nice,
you know, nice day. So we got a call at uh uh
was it Pacific Street and uh and actually I think rescue might have been technically
second due truck because they did have their first and second do boxes. I'm
pretty sure about that. And uh, but we happened to be the first
unit in we beat I think one twenty three in so but to twenty seven
I think was first due and it was a I guess a four story I
think it was a four story frame and fire on the probably the second or
third floor, not sure about that. But so I had the can.
I'm with Artie Connolly was a lieutenant, and I'm just following him. You
know, I didn't even have to put a radio on because I'm in the
engine. Now, everybody in rescue gets a radio, right, I don't
even have to turn the radio on. Yeah, we didn't have radios in
the engine. Only do you off Sudden in the SHOWF had one. It's
all right, all right, I got a radio. I put up my
hood. We have a job put on the hood. And because they I
don't even think they were a mandatory back then, but I had one,
and so we made it up to twenty seven. Goes to the door in
the back exposure three the apartment and they get the door open, fires coming
out the door. They lose water. So and I had the can there
me and being that we're kind of first do truck now, Lieutenant Connley and
myself we're gonna you know, find the fire, do his search and and
the fire they lost water, fire starts coming out through the doorway into the
hallway, and I'm going to start to hit it with the can, and
all of a sudden, I hear he must have just yelled, hey,
go upstairs. I turn around, like, hey, look, I can't
I'm hitting the Yeah, I got the he lost water. I'm hitting the
He goes now. So I turn around and he's got an infant under his
arm. Uh yeah, under a year old. So I said, all
right, guys, you got the can. I think I took the hook
upstairs with me and I made a search on the top floor and I found
a six year old girl. You know, it was kind of tough that
day because my daughter is almost the same age back then. That's all I
kept on thinking about, I'm bringing the I grabbed the girl, supposed to
give her ten forty five. Never did it on the radio. I think
I might have done it later on down the stairs or something, you know.
But I made the search. Fire was uh was going up into the
shaft. So it was pretty good, pretty charged up there, and UH
just hey, did what the training did, right, do a certain picture
and store that picture up and uh brought around. There was no ambulance at
the time. I brought it down and the only thing there was the battalion's
car. I forget what battalion it was. Does it say on the can
now four four? Maybe, I'm not sure. No, it's that's the
two thirty four's oxygen. Oh okay, so uh so, uh, you
know, I took it down, gave her, you know, some oxygen,
and she ended up living. So it was a nice day. Wow
that you ever talked to her after that when she got older? No?
Never did you know it was? I always thought about that, you know,
I'd really like to see who it was, you know, Yeah,
but oh, never never did So how long ago was that? What would
she beat today? All right? That was she was six years old,
and that was in eighty nine or eighty and maybe eighty eight or eighty nine
ninety so she's thirty, she's thirty seven, thirty eight. W yeah,
yeah, like yeah, right, but uh that was the mustache looks a
little darker back then, kids, Sure it is, boy man, and
I probably had a little bit of hair back then too. Where's the picture
of both the early picture of him and his wife? I remember that picture
that look at there's the cop though, right, Yeah, it was that
I think that's him, man. Me and I always wondered who was that
guy? You know that looks like Elvis? I think he was a photo
bombing me, I think. So he's still got his tie on. Nice
bro. Yeah, But but it was funny because now you're in you're in
rescue, all right, the job is over and you just get back in
the rigging right away, no popping ho right, you know. But and
I was actually with that day Addie Connelly he's now passed away, and uh,
Billy Lake and Kevin Dodell Oh wow, really yeah. I got the
other guys though, who was with me? Yeah, that's my wife that
he's part of the club too, bro that right right? Oh the younger
picture too, was like look at that one. Oh yeah boutchi wow?
Wow bro nice she's got that seventies flip bro yeah right, yeah for you,
it doesn't even look like me. Look at that mustard. I say
that every morning I look in the mirror, like, that doesn't even look
like me. Who the fuck is that guy? So? I think I
was looking at the receipts, you know, when you get your gear,
yeah, and you sign up all the information you're supposed to plant in for
emergencies. I think I was one fifty seven when I got on the job.
Wow, yeah yeah, probably yeah, close to that now. But
it was the Faro force at Flip that was the did they put you in
for a metal that day? Metal fu. Yeah, we got to be
both myself and Lieutenant Conley got to be b B well for personal. I
was told that Lieutenant Conley didn't even like to write anything, right, So
I was thankful that at least I got to be. But you know,
I've seen guys go to metal day. We're not the only two people that
think we're rescued in that building or yeah, wow, that's a great h
that's a great think about it. We're first due truck. We're not really
you know, that's a great rap. Yeah, And they said, Stan,
we got to get out of here. I think one twenty three is
going to be mad, like why, you know, because maybe we beating
a man or something. Yeah, yeah, hey, you know the way
it was, it was you guys know what the you know and stuff.
Competition. Yeah, it's competition, good friendly competition. But uh, I
enjoyed working there. I worked a couple of toes and rescue as a fireman
too. One night, my brother came up from Florida, my brother Stephen
at that time he was a marine and he was yeah, he was in
the Marines and he was stationed in Virginia, so he was a volunteer fireman.
So he comes up and again I get the detail at night to go
over to rescue. And it turned out to be a very slow night,
and I think at two in the morning we get a job coming in on
like towards one eleven and one seventy six down that way, and this guy
lit up a tenement. And I got to thank Tommy Richardson for taking me
that night and showing me how to go on to the fire escape in the
back, make it up the fire escape, drop the ladder, go up
the back, and it was raw and people were bailing out the windows right
bailing out. It was great. And my brother Steven stayed in the front
watching the whole thing. All right, again, put it out, you
go back home. Nothing happens. Well, a couple hours later, the
the building went next door went up and it was the same thing. The
guy lit the wrong one on fire. Oh, it was the same thing.
And Stephen goes my brother's like you get this all the time. I'm
like, yeah all the time. Yeah again we did. But you know
he's catching these good jobs, you know. Yeah, so it worn't that
good. But thank you Tommy for helping me out there. Patty Lee said
something about the first time he worked in one twenty four or what happened the
first time. No, I was never in one twenty four. He mentioned
something about working with well maybe the only he met one twenty four. First
time I met one twenty four. Now it's a good ride from one twenty
four over to two seventeen. You know, they have borderline Queen's right,
yeah, over and and they want to say hello to me. My uncle
probably Pete McCarthy, his brick laying partner who was also won twenty four,
and that's why I worked with on the side. But they came over and
uh, Captain Walthall was the captain at the time, really big guy,
you know. Uh, and uh he comes over to me, and you
know, I'm five ft eight and he comes over and gives me a big
kiss on the lips. Welcome son, a new home, welcome to Brooklyn,
and uh it was nice. You know, it's like, oh,
okay, that's Oh, that's freaking awesome. It's great. You never had
a thought to go to one of the trucks. You always wanted to stay
in the engine, you know. Yeah, I just like doing the engine
work, you know. Uh, I like doing the engine work. I
like I was just gonna say, like I got the b over there with
the with the young girl, but the unit citations. I like, because
we're putting out the fire, who's the chief who says put out the goddamn
fire? You know? Yeah? Who was that? You know, We've
had a few guys say different things of who it was, right right?
I love that, love the expression, you know, the fucking fire out.
Yeah, but you know, I really at the time never did.
I mean worked in one eleven truck a lot. Yeah, you had guys
like Jimmy Baseil and uh Kill Cannon and a bunch of good guys coming through
a lot of good guys coming through our seventeen house because we had the art
group, the art for the covering Lieutenants. We worked through our house.
You know a lot of good guys. Did you ever have any of them
ask you, Hey, why don't you come over to the truck? You
know? Nah? Nah, that was all. Uh, you've had Bobby
Austin right done, No, because he's too busy for us. He will
come on all right. Bobby Austin was like recruited from two thirty to go
over to one eleven. But I never got I just never, you know,
got that invitation. So Bobby Sono said, some of us just loved
the engine. Hey, tell Bobby we got promoted together? That right?
Yeah? And he posted a long time ago. Yeah, Pattie said,
height requirement. Yeah. Bobby posted a picture that we were at getting promoted,
and we were at Randall's Island and it was like a hundred degrees and
I'm the picture is of him, but I'm in the background. So at
least I got a picture. I couldn't post that. I don't know where
it is, so at least tell him thank you for that. I love
that guy great too. Huh oh yeah yeah, yeah, good man great?
Yeah. Good. If I call my dad because he reminds me of
my father, he always looks too. Here's the big question. Are you
ready? Yeah, go ahead, you know it's coming, right. Why
do you decide to transfer to the three thirty one? All right, I'm
on vacation you know, been there for a while. I'm on vacation.
I come back and we're we're doing maybe some runs I don't and maybe it
just wasn't a good day for me and we and we got hit from they
started throwing battery. He's at us as we're back in the rigging, and
I remember me and another fireman running up to the There was a lot and
then the uh you know, a tenement and we run upstairs and like we're
going to try to do something to catch these kids. And I said,
uh, you know, I think I've had it. I'm done because I
went to visit a couple of guys who left two seventeen to go to three
thirty one, and I just visited. I said, I'm done. I'm
not going to get promoted because I was on the end of the list,
right and I figured, uh, you know what, let me put a
paper in and uh, regretfully, you know, it was my problem,
my only regret, and not that it was a bad place, but I
should definitely shouldn't have done it. And I ended up going there. Hey,
we had a great, great house, some good guys, and they
were all senior guys too. A lot of the guys from Haarlem and uh,
you know wherever East New York and Brooklyn, you know, and whatever.
But it just wasn't my fit. And actually on the same order Richie
Bevis from two thirty five engine, Uh, actually one thirty two thirty five
fireman went to one thirty two. He happened to be on the same order,
but almost for the same reason. He was in a shootout. Well,
him and another guy, Jimmy Sabastano who is now a lieutenant from two
seventeen he's working in one thirty two or the engine was it to eighty?
They were in a crossfire for shooting. No, shoot, I think screw
that. I'm getting out. That's why he left, and I left because
of some others, you know, stupid reason. But uh, it was
great over there either though. It's not great over there either, no,
I know. But hey, you're on the water. The guys are fishing
in the back. You know, it just looks over there. No,
the neighborhood is not great over there. How would be mocking that sucks?
Oh? Three thirty two thirty one, Oh you're talking about Yeah, ain't
good over there? And the iron a storm right, Oh, so you
went maybe a confused I too, you went to uh, what's seventy five?
And uh, no, I never did. You said, no,
I never went to se You went to on Golden How you get out?
Now? Now the light bulb goes, what the fuck are you doing?
What? I was gonna probably transfer out again, and that time maybe I
would go to the right that I heard I was probably gonna get promoted.
Oh, I got promoted at her there, So yeah, I wanted to
get I should have got promoted. Yeah, I should have got promoted out
of the place you were after almost. Yeah, a friend of mine from
probably school who went from one thirty five truck and he transferred over to that
on Golden Pond, and he just said, soft the sheets on the job,
bro. Really, you know what's weird. What's weird is I caught
like three good fires that you know, thank you you had to worry about,
and uh were almost we got a fire got pushed in on us out
of private you know, we made it through the front door of a one
story private delt dwelling with a basement and you know it's got the kitchen door
on this exposure to side that goes to the kitchen and the stairs. Yep,
Well it's one of the truck guys opened up the door thinking it was
a closet, but two thirty six engine went beat to the basement seller back
door, started the line and pushed the fire up. This guy opens up
the door and we got a shitload of fire on us and Rescue four was
at the front door trying to find us, trying to get us. Saturday.
I mean, we've had a couple of jobs. Was that restaurant on
Italian restaurant in Queens? I'm Leffrits dotey don Pep's ye think there was a
fire over there. We had a job next to next in the supermarket,
but we had a couple of fires there, you know, but it wasn't
like even there for a short time. So really so then I you know,
then I finally got promoted. That's a horse of a different color.
I thought you were talking about three thirty two. I misread that. So
why would you go from to seventeen to be thirty two? Yeah, but
I understand going to three thirty one. It's only one number off, that's
all. Yeah. You U see John Gotti over there? Bro not maybe,
but good neighborhood for that. Oh yeah, bro, yeah, they
took care of those people over there. Yeah, Louis and I went to
school with the Gottis. Oh really with the high school. Yeah, and
uh, what's the other guy's name? Peter? And uh who was in
my class? I forget his name? No, I was a Gotti Richie
Richie Gotty, Richie Gotty. Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
They took care of the neighborhood, that's for sure. Yeah. They
liked the Double Park, though. You ain't gonna tell them the movie Red
Time to get our dinner and lunch Red Time. I remember that Red Time.
Yeah. I love that place when I was a kid, and then
I was the other the Pizza City, right, wasn't that Pizzizza City is
gone? But that used to be a treat I tell my kids all the
time. It used to go once every six months to Pizza City. Lenny's
Clams, right, yeah, that's right. Yeah, Russo's on the bay
down the block. Ink. Yeah, I had one of my I had
one of my weddings there, bro me yeah, for good about it.
So all right, so you go to three thirty one, then you get
promoted right August fourth of ninety one, this is where we start a Bureau
fire prevention. That was a common thing, right, Yeah, it keeps
coming back pretty long. We were told we were all going to get promoted.
I guess there was a lot of attrition at the time, and a
lot of guys retiring getting out, a lot of bosses, right, and
they made the whole list. I think they made the whole list. But
you know, I did well on the first test. But the first test
was thrown out because of whatever you want to call it, whatever, you
know, bush marks. That was yeah, like eighty I think six or
something like that. I did pretty well on that, and then, uh,
you know, I figured I got to study again now, so I
didn't study as much. You know, you lose it a little bit,
but hey, I still made it. And uh, you know, but
now they told us we had to we'll do favors. Some guys went to
Bureau of Operations, didn't even get an house. Some guys went to UH
Division of Training. Some guys went to UH five Prevention. So I had
to go to five Prevention. I became head of the acting like boss fire
boss of Division ten at the time, I think ten or eleven whatever it
was. So now I had to go every day though, four days,
four days a week to uh living was Livingston Street at the time. Yeah,
Livingston Street where you had to go four days a week you had to
go, Yeah, four week I had to get on the train and go
to work. What yeah, you know. So and that in Manhattan.
Yeah, it's better than Manhattan, I guess, right is on the Brooklyn
Brooklyn Yeah, the old original headquarters. Yeah yeah, fifty Livingston Street.
Yeah, so I did that for a while. And it's funny how uh
who was it Tom Greeney from one Away Truck one hundred and eighth sorry,
and uh we both went to that d o. I'm end up having a
little fight with the civilian fire prepensed guy allegedly, allegedly, and then he
gets transferred to it. He goes to a company. You can send them
out to a company and you're just still there. You should have punched somebody
in the face, bro, you know, yeah, you know. So
she was just taking one of those civilian guys and punched them right the joy
and you would have been a company bro. Yeah, you know. You
gotta do what you gotta do, you know. So how we just spend
the fire prevention I probably about a year and a half. Two four days
a week for a year and a half. Yep, yeah, yikes,
yeah, and I got yeah, I did. Then I'm assigned to the
five three battalion, so it was so packed still, you know, everybody
who had I guess bigger hooks, got some companies, all got the cover,
and so I went to the fire three. I covered a little bit
over there. Who's the truck near Anton's? Remember the uh sixty Anton's the
restaurant in Queens what sixty two? Who's else? Feel bull run? No,
that's the other way, uh more on the north shore. But anyway,
I go to the truck over there. I'm covering one day and we're
out on BI and the districts are so big for the trucks, you know,
we're out on one. I guess the s end of the administrative district,
and uh we get a call, so we shoot over to uh the
other side of the district. I said, guys, by time we get
back to the other side of the district, it's gonna be, uh,
it's going to be it's gonna be ten to four. It's gonna be almost
four o'clock. Go back to the firehouse. Do not punch in? All
right, don't don't punch in on the computer. And uh so now it's
ten to four, phone rings house watch because they stand, Chief wants to
talk to you. No way the kid someone punched in. So now because
I would have been listening on the air where area. So the chief now
comes and visits me, and he tells me that, yeah, you have
the guys are running this house. You're a new lieutenant. I was going
to give you engine two seventy four because I was going to take two seventy
four and at ten to four before a big deal about ten to four,
Oh, I'm like, all right, I would have been I would have
take my lump, saying I'm a new I don't know what to do.
You should have put your foot up that kid's ass is what you should have
done. You know, like you said, you knew, I don't know
who the guys are. You don't know. That's another thing. You don't
know who the guys are, right, you know? And but uh so,
uh at night I was at home, I get a phone call.
They stand, you want to go to h you want to teach at the
rock. I'm like not really, you know, I'm doing all this stuff.
You know, what do you got? He goes, well, we're
looking for guys to teach has MATT operations. I said, what's that.
That's a new class because everybody had to do it because Osha came in and
said we were all weren't trained to any levels of PASMAT right, So I
said, I don't know how to spell has his materials. I says,
But he goes, oh, we'll teach you. They had a bunch of
good guys over there teaching, you know, setting it up. And I'm
thinking about this chief who just yelled at me, And I'm thinking about,
you know what, my daughter is young enough, she's on the softball league.
Maybe I'll go help hang out be a coach. I says, you
know what, Yeah, why not? So I took the detail and then
ended up being really yeah, pretty good. Actually even better than good,
because now we're able to work. You know, Paulie Talbot, Yeah sure,
Seff Talba, Chief Talbot. I'm trying to get him on the show,
Chief Talk. You got her. Paula's a great guy. Me and
Paulie were partners and we set up our classes. Now, I don't think
the older chiefs are listening anyway. So we set up our classes, said
we didn't have to be two guys doing the class. One guy come in
the morning, take the afternoon or you know whatever. Yeah, and we
got the job done. Well, that's what it was. We take that
schedule. Man. We took care of the We took care of business.
But it was hard teaching has Matt because I still had to learn it.
I didn't teaching yet that time. The teaching well, Bobby Ingram was I
think just promoted for a while. So he had set up a program with
George Mayer, you know chief mayor was it Battalion fifty four and four who's
at fourth the eighth battalion. George was over there doing some good stuff.
And they ran a class. They trained about probably about at least fifty guys.
We all went up to different sites. Statt Nyland had a site Brooklyn
Navy Yard, seventy three engine in the Bronx and where else maybe that was
it. And uh, and you set up different guys teaching the class.
Guys would come in from Brooklyn or Queen's for the Navy Yard, and it
was tough because some guys did not want to learn Hasmack or not that theyn'tven
want to learn. It didn't want to be there, you know, and
it was new at the time, and you know, you try to entertain
some of the guys, and some of some guys were good though. Some
guys really wanted to learn. And I always felt that, hey, I'm
I'm willing to learn and uh, you know, learn the stuff because you
had before this, right we had was it rescue for was the only has
mat right? Right? You had a lot of good guys from there learning,
you know, we're teaching and stuff. John Dorman, you know,
lou A lot of guys come on the show and they do these things where
somebody calls them up out of nowhere like that and says, hey, listen,
you want to come do this, you want to come do that,
and they're like, I don't know, but you know, it's like seems
like it's perfect timing in their career, excuse me. And then all of
a sudden, you just like you just said, before you know it,
it just fits and yeah, you never you know, it's not something that
you're looking to do, and it before you know it. It's just it's
a perfect thing for you, you know, what I mean in your career,
as long as you had good guys work. And we did have a
problem one of lieutenants, and I think with no stop it. I think
I never heard of him. And I'm not going to name names, but
yo, one of the old bosses had an argument with the lieutenant. So
they just got up and left after a bunch of yelling, and the one
lieutenant that worked for with us, I'm taking marks in the journal. We
had a journal, and you know that's it. You guys are having charges.
So I told that guy to leave and I took care of the rest
of the class for the rest of the day. Of the lieutenant he left.
So I'm at uh, I'm at home again, and Chief cassa Bury
calls up. Remember the chief or do you know the name? I know
the name, great chief. He ended up. You know he was who
that ty bear, but a fantastic chief, a gentleman too, because I
stand how you doing? The good chief, honestly tell me what happened.
I told them what happened. I said, the little argument, it got
a little hot, and uh, and that was it. So that lieutenant
didn't teach us anymore. Two ninety You think how to come and retake the
class, you know. But other than that, it was it was pretty
much okay, you know, but it was boring. Slides were there then
slide slide slide, so you had really had to get into it. So
I got into it, you know, and you almost didn't need the carousel
of slides you know talking about And it really wasn't that bad. So I
got into it. I would bring my son in once in a while,
and he knew all the colors, he knew all these NFPA seven or four
diamonds, you know, he knew the gases. He'd be blurting out the
answers. The guys were like, hey, kid, knock it off.
You're making us look bad, you know. So that was just the basic
stump. And you were looking at all they all the stuff in the guidebook,
Yeah, in the guidebook, right, yeah, the OT guidebook and
you know, some helpful hints. Hey, and who knows and now has
matters big, right, I mean, yeah, you were on the cusp.
Yeah, so end up being good. So one night, the chief
cruthers who happened to be working in the Marine division, that was like a
semi semi sock at the time, right, the Marine Division was there.
Oh no, Chief Cruthers said, stand one night, you're working and has
Matt won tonight over time. I'm like, Chief, I've double worked there
before, you know. No, you're working there tonight, Chief stand,
I says, okay, Chief, you got it. So I had mydea
with me, naturally, and I go over to has Matt one and they're
probably looking at me. Who's this guy walking in the door, you know,
because usually had the guys who has Matt fireman? Right, we're now
lieutenants and stuff like that, you know. And and I just missed Jack
Fanning that he was a captain there for a while. I think Chief Gallagher
went when he was a captain was there and then Jack, he was like
the godfather of sock righty's Jack good old? Look at that guys, Look
at that guy's breast there. That's one of the guys that me and Louis
say. This guy he's got three a's that I could see. He's got
three b's that I could see. I'm like, it's incredible metal day colors,
right, absolutely incredible. Yeah, he had to counterweight in the other
so we wouldn't walk crooked. Jeff Bolkowski. I'll put that back. Who's
the other guy on the right side of what was his name? Uh,
John Olicky in the middle Tony to Bolkowski and Kowski. Oh my god,
I remember that, Yeah, chief Ingram mm hmm. I mean, uh
it was. It was a good crew. So finally, uh, I
worked over there the first night and has Matt. We had a couple of
runs. They freedom me fine, you know, uh, And again I
was just on overtime, nothing assigned and nothing. And my first night we
got a bunch of runs. I know, we had to do some drum
recovery stuff. We've got a good call. I think I might put it
on the paperwork for radiological really, you know. And at the FedEx plant
in in uh Manhattan on thirty fourth Street, when it happened was, uh
the FedEx driver is delivering a box, small box to U n Yu I
think one of the hospitals, and the hospital does not accept it because they
looked at the box and the box was broken, broken open, very well
damaged. So uh now it's got seeds of idnee. So uh, I
mean is it bad? It's it's stuff they use for putting in uh in
patients for chemo and radiological therapy for cancer. But they have to insert it
and it does have I think it's got a shelf half life of sixty days.
The seeds, the seed is not much bigger than a dash on the
computer. Really, yeah, I think I have on the paperwork and some
of the pictures I sent in. But anyway, yeah, you won't even
be able to see it. Don't worry about it. It's a picture.
I always thought it was like a pumpkin seed or something. No, it's
oh, it's like like a dash, you know. Rook, Thank god,
you order anyway size they want. They got up. The seeds are
all over the place. So now we get there and we got to go
through. Now, don't forget we're the only rick. There's no more squad.
There's no squads yet, there's no you know, support, you know,
we're the only guys. We got the resource man who did a great
job. He's got to call up. We had to call up I think
uh five or six different destinations. The seeds started in California, went to
Texas, went to uh Texas, Illinois, New Jersey, and then to
the FedEx and then to the hospital. Now you're getting a broken box,
so they had to call up every box and see if it was how it
was. So we determined that the box was damaged at the FedEx plant and
it leaked seeds all over the place. Wow, so maybe from the guy
kicking it down the hallway, don't Yeah. Well, so luckily the nurse
realized, hey, we're not accepting this. So we got a bunch of
calls and we had a you know deputy, you know, deputy comes in
battalion chief deputy and oh em Board of Health was really at the time was
in charge of radiologicals and and they realized they couldn't deal with anything, so
they hey, can you help us stay here? So we end up finding
I think total of seventy five seeds. We found about fifty of them I
think. But fine, and they're like you some tweezes. We're using the
meter. Come on the wing with tweezes. We had to take the conveyor
belts apart at at the Fedecks building. So it was a good night at
least it was about four hours at that at that one point, what year
is this? This is like I'm trying to think when it was that was.
I mean, you got the six. Wait, my first tour was
ninety ninety four. All right, yeah, that was again I wasn't even
detail there, so I said, hey, this ain't too bad, you
know what. Well, then, thank goodness Philly mcgondell. He rough wrote
up the unit citation that we got that nice, So thank you Philly,
Philly Max. Yeah, hey, Philly was the the grand pappy of that
place. You know, you know, he was a good start, good
man's for that place. A lot of guys were did he have a jumpsuit
on? What's that? Did he have his jumpsuit on? I think he
did? You know that he never came out of him. Be true,
that guy used to use that where that one piece jumpsuit all the time like
that, because I don't think he could do it was hard for you to
get in and out of it. Bro. He was a large manus just
like that. Maybe there you go. It's like a fine on a whim.
But so that was. That was the night of my first job at
has matt In my first unit citation. First night, so did pretty good
one for one beautiful bat in the thousands did so? Then? Uh,
I think I ended up we did pretty good well there, pretty pretty well
and you didn't run the other way. Now that's what I mean, you
know, for you. Yeah, hey what radio radio Lon, I'll be
over here. You guys figure that I'm going home, right up? Guy
get counter? Yeah, yeah, I'm gonna go over there. Now you
got counter. I should have said ludlum Yeah he said lod No you said
lovem Yeah, okay, yeah, he's missing. And then I go back
and then uh I interviewed with John Fatta, who was at the captain at
the time, again another I think three thirty two guy, John Fatta,
but he said, hey, Stan, you know you we're looking for a
spot. Actually they were looking for a fourth lieutenant there because that was actually
on the books for New York City to have four lieutenants in that one unit.
So it was on the city charter, was it, Yeah, city
charter, you couldn't take the fourth guy out. And so what I did
is uh I was scheduled for days. But then if I was to cover
all the vacation spots, so it was like having a big R group,
you know, for the guys right for the lieutenants and offices, you'd have
an our group to cover the like the twenty fifth spot right on the chart
and vacations and sickly, So I got to do that and then uh,
and then finally Pete Steuby came over as the captain. Yeah. I worked
there for a while with Pete and uh again another we had some knowledgeable guys
come in there. You know, I had to go when I first got
there, I had to go take a chemistry class at the National Fire Academy,
and chemistry I didn't take that in high school. And I'm like,
guys, I don't know chemistry. You gotta go. You got if you
want to be in has mad, you gotta do two week class at the
National Fire Academy. I was always a day behind that when they were teaching,
you know, and so h. But finally the next after the second
week, I started to catch up. You know, a lot of A
and E s you guys, chemistry guys, Ganza as my haman involves the
thumb. If I can block a lot of a lot of that stuff.
Again, not of my league with chemistry, but I had guys like Kevin
Smith, Dennis Scalzo, Tommy Gardner came in late chemistry guys, Tommy god
fifty eight engine right, Yeah, I mean, if you if you had
to figure out Mike Connolly, good guys. Yeah, Mikey Connolly ended up
going to Squatty Team. But like Skiff, I think about Scalzo and Smith.
You know those guys when it came to at that time, right,
those guys were the definitely to go to guys if some stuff going on like
that, right, Yeah, you know it's like being a boss, like
Stan, how'd you like it? Well? I was learning. I definitely
was learning. But when you're a boss, I said, I could hold
up a flash light just as well there in the fire as I can and
has been. Right. Well, look guy, it's not like that,
but you know, you know what I mean. It's like, hey,
when you you have guys are that good and you got to rely on them?
Yeah, yeah, you gotta rely it. Well, it's just like
a job, right Yeah. Big Company was it of Kevin Smiths? Yes,
Kevin smith was down there too. Yeah, you know that's what I
mean. You never know where the guys are, oh all the time.
That's my one favorite saying. You never know who you're talking to. Who
I remember? I remember Stuby, I can't picture his face. I remember.
Oh yeah, great, great, head, right, what is he
doing now? That guy? I think he's still working for either con Ed,
No, what con Ed he was working. It's still working in Manhattan.
I'm trying to think. I think he was working for Disney for a
while. Was he was something in h smart again? Another smart guy coming
with his New York Times? Yeah, and uh you know, and that
was it? But was a how how was it with Jack hack Tell me
some stuff about I love Jack hack Man. Was that guy kookie or what?
Like? What was the story with him? You know? Yeah,
but I don't really remember. I mean I was a kid. I wasn't
really paying attention, you know, like that gave a great massage. Yeah,
did you eat a lot of garlic? But you can count my neck
though, right, Yeah? Yeah, yeah, I drinking green water.
You were making vegetables. I didn't put the green water in the side.
He would drink it. Well, that was like Timmy Stackpole, Timmy Stackpole,
God, God bless Timmy Reagan. It's always on that health kicker,
right, yeah, until he is all that stuff blocked up his intestines.
Cash get a grapefruit sized blockage in his intestines. Yeah. In two seventy
four, now isn't she what's that Kevin Smith's daughters in two seventy four,
right, she went from thirty nine. I think she went to two seventy
four. Okay, yeah, I don't know where she was. She said
that when she was at the squad of she went to seventy four. Yeah,
it's quiet. That's a nice house over there. Yeah, you do
some work over there, yeah, tech it, yes, But what I
like about it you had a whole street that you can park and then you
get a ticket. My first, my first there is a lieutenant. I'm
in one forty truck and I get a parking ticket. So what is that
in the city? You know, I remember some of my first you know
what year was that because my father was over there. Oh yeah, yeah,
probably ninety h He was gone an eighty right, he was eighty eight.
Yeah, it probably would have been like when I was still covering some
ninety three ish or something like that. Ninety two he was gone an eighty
eight. Yeah. Who are the other bosses there with you at that time?
Do you remember where? Yeah? It was Creasy Creasy was the boss
there at that time. Got chrissy. Yeah again, idea, do you
have any old guys in the Kevin Cully plush Well basically Pete still be Kevin
Cully chrishy and well am I leaving out? Come on, I can't,
I can't recall. We need to go to a picture for you. No,
they he ain't gonna be here. That's Bill Conway in the middle.
Remember Bill Battalions. She ended up coming over after nine to eleven to run
the hazmat ops. Yeah, he's the old but he didn't work at that
Neil Yank that Jack, Yeah, Bill Yank. It's funny. I followed
him in three different companies to seventeen. He was the two seventeen guy.
I know, he was a one thirty eight guy. Guy seventeen actually when
I worked at the Delhi before I got on the job, Neil Yank Uh,
Kevin Shamberger, Yeah yeah, Kevin, Yeah, Kevin Shamberg. And
the lieutenant from to seventeen, who was that now at the time, I'm
trying to think of his name, would come over and stop at my deli
and they'd get a button rolling a coffee and they you're gonna be on the
job, kid, don't worry, you know. And then then Neil left.
Then he went to what uh one eighty and missed that one, but
then he went to one seventy three. I saw three thirty one and then
I end up seeing him. It has met one. Wow, Joey Ivino,
Joey, I yeah, good man, Joey, Freddy Cohler, Philly
mcgonald made this one. Carl Shram, Freddy Cohlin, Carl Shram, Kevin
Crosby, that's uh, what's his name in the back there? Tony Carbon,
Tony car Bony. Yeah, yeah, I got a couple of those,
but a couple of different ones. Rodgers, and then there's the rochi
of the funniest unfunny most unfunny funny man. Right, uh, Tolly Rodgers
you had on right? Yeah? Doherty? What I can't hear you?
What? Yeah? You gotta get his good heart. Yeah. I saw
Vinny at the Maureen Fannings Dinner dance last week. Bobby Wilson. I don't
know if you guys met him. No, No, he ended up going
to has met Ops for a while. Red jacket water, I'm sorry that
was my little lieutenant. He's without that mustache though. Yeah, I don't
remember him. Yeah, he was, you know, former Navy seal.
I gotta give him his credit. Yeah, he was, he was.
He dove into that. The flight was at LaGuardia. Yeah, you had
that in and uh he went into the plane under the water to get somebody
out. Hey, look who's in the chat, Lieutenant. Who's that?
Bobby Bobby Hunter? Bobby Hunter. Yeah, yeah, Bobby Hunter came up
for one of the breakfasts. Were head one of my favorite guys, Bro,
Bobby Hunter. Go back, Gonzo, go back. You mentioned Patty
Waters. Yep, go back to the water picture of h I'm sorry,
go ahead, No, I was gonna say while we're talking, what who
you look at one? Look for the lord with Tomaszuski. Next one.
Yeah, okay, so the guy, the rather large fellow that with the
glasses right there. I don't tell you quick stories. So it was a
night tour. It's the morning. I'm in the bathroom shaving, and when
you look out the bathroom window you can see guys coming in the morning.
And Ed's got this giant fucking sheet cake that he must he must have had
for when uh it was his daughter's graduation. So what he did was he
pieced it all together and brought it in his one fucking cake, right,
So I go, I got him. I got him. He comes in
the kitchen. I go, hey, probably you bringing breakfast. You can't
bring in used cakes. That's against the rules. You can't bring you can't
bring him used cakes. He goes, that's not used. I go,
dude, you you pasted it all together. You watched him do it.
No, but I could see it was cut and the only day was push
it together. I'm like, that's against the rules. You can't do that.
He goes, no, it's not. I'm like yeah, and as
I'm like, besides the point, it's bad. The cream is bad.
He goes, no, it's not. He puts his face down and smelled
him like, holy he fell under. He's got glasses on bro and the
cake like three years off his glass glasses. But when he first put his
face out and looked like, holy ships, really happening happened this guy on
this guy on the part apartment, Like, you guys, you know what
Cob used to do to him all the time, I've never heard that story.
He goes, He's just saying, are you Tom and Azuski and Tom,
like, holy ship, the guy fell for it. My face got
the cake, bro, I'm bashing your face that guy. If that ever
guy got pissed at you, coobs, he would squash you like sit on
me. Oh my god. He was such a sweet He was such a
sweetheart. Yeah, he was just sweet. He's such a good even even
now when I somehow somewhere I ran into him. Uh maybe at one of
the shows what we did, and he might be still teaching and doing stuff.
I don't know what he's doing. He's always teaching. We ran it.
He comes to the long Islan Yeah, yeah, yeah, I think
he works for north Shore now also, you know, always teaching. Yeah.
The only other guy I got that was Belisari. He had a cheesecake
in his hand and I said to him, dude, I threw my piece
out. That was bid. He goes, no, it's not. Guy.
I worked with Tony after we both retired. Tony and I worked for
teaching. We worked for the government basically. Again, that's my second government
job. That's the other job that was or bomb. What were you doing
with the guys that this was the pre positioned equipment program right by Congress.
That's every little thing right there that I just said. That heard that name
his name was Richie Ting. Every used to call him every little ting something
something wrong. I worked with that Garrett Lingren Yeah, yeah, yeah,
a bunch of bunch of guys from up there from Rescue four. Because the
job we had that was a different job working for the government. We put
the tools and equipment for the next nine to eleven together and we had about
ten different spots all over the country designated with two tractor trailers. You had
to have has matt you have had had to have your CDLs, so we
had to all go get those. But Eddie Beeban was the boss. I
don't know if you know Eddie. He was from Rescue three. Eddie came
over to help us work with Jack Fanning when we were at haz matt Ops.
But we all retired and Eddie Knwolly's contractors and he said, hey,
we're making a unit. You want to work And that's what actually between after
nine to eleven and stuff. I said, yeah, you know what,
I'll take it, and then I realized the again, another five day a
week job, you know, right, it's not you're not doing twenty fours.
But we ended up working at Camp Smith. We had the unit up
there, so now I had to travel from Long Island up to Camp Smith,
we moved up to Middletown and then we moved up to Bloomenberg. So
uh yeah, there was a lot of traveling. So I ended up stopping
doing that, but I worked with Tony bell Sarry teaching the radiation to remember
that whatever that class was out there, if it was Nevada test site,
and then you had a bunch of traveling road shows, you'd go do too.
But we worked with a lot of E. S U cops. Well
they brought us in and uh one guy who headed that was an the s
U guy, So he brought in his two uh fire guys and actually Mark
Amerberg. You remember Mark. Yeah, that Mark was E. M.
S. But he ended up being assistant commissioner at the shops, right,
yeah, he Marks another guy, good guy worked with us and that stuff
too. I tried to get let us in the shops so we can do
a show from the shops, but I don't know. He said yes,
but it never happened. He retired recently, so yeah, yeah, yeah,
so you finally get asigned the hazmat in y e. See, Now
that was another one I knew Chief guancy a little bit through my uncle angel
He was good friends with my uncle Angela, you know. And uh,
it was always like a running thing we do. I go to golf animals
with them and stuff. And I said, Chief, when am I?
When are you going to assign me to has Matt? I put the paper
in like three years ago. Just don't worry about it, you'll get there.
Don't worry about it. You're there, like I'm not worried about it,
but just like to have it on the order. You don't want to
be detailed forever, you know. And then finally he he stand it's on
the order and it comes out has Mad, I said, Chief, there's
no such thing as has Mad. There was there was, I don't think
there was. Yeah, there was. Has Matt Operations just started, you
know, but there was has Matt one or has Matt operations? Right?
What is it? And it just that's all I'm assigned to. His sounds
pretty typical there, Lou, Yeah, has Mad right, Oh, there's
no doubt always hanging around that. So I worked a lot back and forth
between has met Ops and has met one mostly has met Ops now, ye
know. And uh, but uh, you know, I felt I did
a good job there, especially starting it too. Has Met was its own
entity, right. We had guys like Scotty Kershoffer. When I first got
there, he was again another Halem firefighter. But I walked into the has
Mat, uh when it was just has Met in two eighty eight, you
know, engine, I see this guy in the back in civilian clothes and
he's he's doing all the cylinders, And I said, maybe he's a civilian,
because no, that's Scotty. He doesn't put his uniform on anymore.
He was so eccentric, like how many birds need to die for the seven
gas, you know, for you to figure out stuff? And when the
pulpe was visiting us, he just got us the I think that was the
APD two thousand if you want way, yes, of course, the original
one, you know, and uh like it was like this big right,
Yeah, it was either a matter of a bunch of canaries, you know,
and uh and bring it to the site to see if it was working.
But Scotty ran that place for a while, with a lot of help
from Dennis Scalzo. When he got there, you know, he had his
own lab stuff, you know, working and uh. But then uh,
then it evolved has Met operations came into effect with Chief Heron and then uh
so then that's when Haron grabbed me to go over to has Matt operations at
the Navy yard. I really don't want to go, but I just basically
ordered to go, even though I was the fourth lieutenant, you know.
But all right, I'm not going to argue for a while. And then
then Chief Fanning came in. Chief Hearing I think either got promoted or went
to Staten Island, and uh, and I became you know, I went
over with Chief Fanning or stayed there. I said, and like Louis said,
who's this guy coming in? Jack Fanning? Okay, seemed like a
very very nice man. You know. Uh, he got things going.
We actually hired a civilian to be the secretary, and that was Rachel.
That's Rachel. So we you know, we there's Rachel. She's still there.
Everybody knows Rachel. Ye good, good girl, My wife are close.
Hey, leave her alone. Looks like my daughter coming in there,
you know, guy, leave her alone. But you know, so we
started getting things going. We got more and more equipment, and again Eddie
Beeban came in. He was actually there to him and Hugo Herald both rescue
three guys and Jack knew them from Harlem and all that area and rescue and
uh Jack worked in the rescues too, I'm sure I know we did.
But he brought them over and uh, Eddie got Eddie was like Klinger maybe
you know in mash anything you needed, and we need to tractor trailers.
He got military. No, Peter Bilt. This Peter BILTI tractor that was
you know beautiful and uh that was the main trailer for FEMA for a while.
And so we got yeah, well we had a paint, repaint,
trailers and everything and you know, we worked over there, so it wasn't
too bad. But so but then we end up going to the Brooklyn,
uh to Randall's Island and right, well, well the big thing was planning
for the year two thousand, the computers, you know, and you know
what happened worked out fine hat y two k right right matrix. Yeah,
so we went over but we got finally got a building at Randall's Island,
you know, and uh and ended up, uh, you know, working
out pretty good. Hey, look, you know what I wanted to ask
you, what was it? What was the story? With the car accident
again with my son. Yeah, I don't remember the whole thing. You
got to bring me up to. Yeah, I'm glad you reminded me because
my son was working in uh em em E M S at the I think
was a battalion right there. It is Mike the five four over on Maurice.
I guess the station over there two is it a two week for six
thank you? The four six E M S. Right, So he was
working. I think he was coming off a night tour, uh, because
it must have been at one or two in the morning. It was coming
home now is uh was envoy so it was a pretty big car. And
uh he ends up getting a flat. So where's his spare tire? It's
at home, so he calls me, now, a dad, I need
a spare tire. Well, isn't in the car now it's uh, it's
a home so I'm gonna go on the highway. He well, yeah,
he got the flat on the highway and it's right on the l I E.
And then there's ah, it's where that divider divided the service road with
the concrete over there. Yeah, and coming I guess away from Russ Street
over that way. Right, and uh, he calls me up, so
I'm gonna bring him. Now the he pulls all the way, he puts
his flares up. We all that's good stuff. And uh, I'm gonna
bring him the spare tire and uh and actually I got my scanner on,
so I'm listening to the uh you know, Queen's coming in and I hear
a now overturned car on the l I E. And I'm like, ship,
what happened? Well? It end up that bunch of m drunk guy
driving the car sees the flares and like morphs to the light. They head
right towards his car. He jumps over the concrete barrier. Their car hits
his car and flips the I think flips his his car and now it's flipped
over. So now I'm like, and I passed it? Or did I
pass it? I think, Uh, I'm not sure. Did I talk
to you, Louis? I think, yeah, you called me first before
we got the run. I think I gave right, Yeah, we gave
it a verbal and we raced over there. I remember that came. It
was already. He said that they already got the call and it was already.
Louis was saying it was amazing that he lived through the Oh my god.
And then when he told me who he was, you know, he
was sticking up. But uh when you know, we blocked the traffic because
I think his car was here, the other car was over there, so
it was kind of spread out. There were cars still flying through the middle
of the Again, he had angels watching over him, you know. Yeah,
he's got thrown out of another car, didn't he. Yeah. Uh,
he had a cheap He was going to a a call with the valleys
and he got hit, you know, going to the firehouse, right call,
right, He was in his cheep Wrangler. Yeah, and uh,
luckily, I mean that didn't turn over. It had a really it's a
big heavy cheep, you know, wide tires, everything raised. But uh,
he ended up working his way out of that one. And and now
he's in uh Nashville Fire Department. Oh is he? I didn't even know
that. Yeah, yeah, that's that's their battalion, Battalion eight eight.
I guess that's what they call their battalion who's working out they're still recruits.
I guess they're called their recruits. He did three months. MIC's in the
back there. He did three months of em T training. So they're all
certified EMTs and now they're they're going through the suppression part of their training.
He's getting on right now. He's like, yeah, still there. They
worked their guys asses off. I give them credit. A couple more of
those guys. Looks like I gotta put down the hot dogs a little bit.
How many how many guys in Nashville have now? You know, but
I'm not sure the amount of guys. But I'm not sure. It's got
to be growing. I would imagine that. I know the place is growing.
Big Mike was telling me, you turn around all the time. They're
building skyscrapers. No ship, they work there, man. Yeah, so
uh there's different the times. Who work fast. I guess more work like
me. I like here, you know they get their jobs. Yeah,
but uh yeah, so hopefully January. I think sometime in January because graduation
must be happy. Yeah. Yeah, I'm glad that's what he wanted to
do, you know, because he aged out over here. Yeah you know,
did you ever go down there? A lot? You go to see?
I did go down there to help them move. So so he just
did this or he just did they call him up. Hey, you got
to be here in three weeks. It's like, remember getting the call for
the job. But now this guy's got to move from Holy Elmore to Nashville.
So we got a town and not one kid. Right, he's got
a little boy. Yeah, cute kid. I love that. Every time
he coached the firehouse. I love that kid. Yeah. So well,
really quick, tell us about what it was like when the squad first came
there. You were like these fucking douche baes. I know there was a
little gonna be a little rubbing around, a little friction, but well I
didn't know that, but there kind of was, right, young guys had
some senior guys like Eric Allen came over, right, who else Hank did?
Hang him over? Then we got a picture Hank. Yeah, gotta
love Hank. Who doesn't love Hank. Yeah, that's why I said,
I said, this is this is the one I gotta put up here.
Yeah. He's always there for nine to eleven, always there for the guys,
you know, uh Nikki Carrado, God bless him. Yeah. Nick
does a good job for at N. I remember him as a fireman,
a young guy to eighty eight. That's like, that's like comparing like Mark
Cocarola. You know Mark with me in two seventeen. Now he's you know,
he's up there too. Yeah, yeah, uh but you know what,
but hey, you guys, you had Dennis Murphy, you had Vinnie
young Garo who I worked with both in you know, over Are one eleven
to fourteen. I was studying with them for a little while, you know,
all good guys. So they were going to straighten you guys out.
I guess they did, or did they? Yeah? They did? We
well, we upset the Apple card over there a little bit because I've heard
a couple of good stories and eighty eight was not really a go getting placed.
And now you had a whole bunch of young guys looking to go to
fire all the time. Listen to the scanners all the time. Yeah,
you know, I remember Neil Yank like again, another one of those guys
who saw a lot of fire, right. I know, it was a
big volley. He was kind of at the tail end of his career,
you know, so he was kind of like get out of here, stop
that, you know, like you know, but but I became close with
him too. I remember, you all just wanted to do his his Civil
War stuff him dominant Recreation doesn't. He still doesn't. He's awesome, that's
a funny Guy's a good guy. Man. Yeah, I think we can't.
We can't a good crew there, you know. Yeah, and the
names on that on nine eleven, you know, you just you know what,
Joey Hunter, and it haunts you know, And I don't have to
tell you guys, it just haunts me all the time thinking of these guys,
you know, and both these companies. You know, guys, I
think, what are we talking about this? Yeah? Right, original the
original drawing. Yeah, so, uh, Bobby Hunter made those stickers,
I believe if I had to put on the rig, yeah, Bobby Hunter
came out and came out gorgeous. But what else? I mean, all
the squads have a little bit of problems, right, I mean, you
know, a little friction here and there. But hey, that's I think
were the only us to lose right with jobs? You know, Yeah,
I think we were the only squad that was in with another company though,
right, roof, I think everybody else was a single leg. Yes,
Anally, I'm sorry stand for sending Corrado, de Volio and Rofrano. There
was some growing page with Hasbat. That's fine, you know, but YE
had guys like you know, I Helpie who We were putting scanners in the
fucking bunk room. And I think I think out of everything, like when
I think about Neil and Yank he he could have strangled a Helpi at any
time. You know, you know all those guys. That's another man.
I worked with Lee the Father, you know, yeah right, yeah,
Rescue Too, and yeah, not much, but I knew of them,
and hey, you know these guys, you know, I when I got
there, looked up at these guys and Rescue Too. You know, money
we just you saying all of those people that you knew. We wouldn't even
know that you knew any of those guys, you know what I mean at
that time. Meanwhile, you had a career life was on at one eleven
and even in two seventeen, some of the senior guys, you know,
and and that whole area one twenty four, I, in fact, because
I knew, you know, was with my uncle all the time. You
just knew though these guys. I'd caught pool in with these guys and my
cousin Joey from Too eighteen with carpool that was another good house, another sleep
of house that you know, Uh, no one knew existed unless you worked
there to m keen on Hot Street. Yes, yeah, in Bushwick.
You know we have a picture of somebody from two eighteen and you have that's
my cousin Joe Hatzelman, right, and he passed away from nine to eleven,
uh cancer. Yeah, and actually we were very close. We were
like brothers and uh we did a lot of stuff, played softball together.
We worked at his father's deli together for years before I got on the job.
Wow, young sixty too. Yeah, you have another picture I think
of this team. No, there''s anything from two eighteen. That's it.
Seventeen horrible horrible stuff. Yeah, but uh you know that good times.
You've done good there, lieutenant right back. Yeah. I had a great
career, you know, do I we'd all I think we'd all say we'd
do it all over again, but not with the bones we have now.
No. I like before on the pre show Guns, I'm like, hey,
Gons, what did you do today? He's like, oh, I
was, Uh we were teaching trench and everything. I was like, holy
shit, I'm like I remember teaching trench. I'm like, did they still
use the webbing to uh tighten up the couplings and everything. He's like,
we don't do that anymore. I'm like I used to say, get the
hell out of here with this ship. You know, it's never gonna happen
none of that stuff that we talk. Can you imagine climbing down to a
trench. I can't get up the toilet bowl and I the only trench shop
came across. A quick story. We got to call for a Maine a
gas main break in some place in Queen's and we mad, you know,
met meet the chief. Hey, chief, what could we do for you?
Well, there's a guy in the ditch over here? Could you talk
to him? We go over there and this thing is hissing and spitting up
gas under high pressure. It's Glenn Harris, right, and I'm like,
I ain't telling him anything. That's the number one guy I want coming for
me. Actually, yeah, right. But the reason you've got there,
I said, Chief, that's a that's up to you. You know I
think that we're gonna I says, has Matt got there? We broken the
teams and we went in to meet her. The houses that were might have
gotten you know that. But so that was the only trench job that I
ever went to you, and of course he was in there. That's class.
Yeah, the guy you want right, Yeah, you know, I
know Bobby Hunter is still throwing jams there. I had no problem with the
new engine. Guys, look at him, he still still has didn't They
talk about engine goes? Right? Yeah? Yeah? How long did it
take to change that engine to squad? Right? Timmy Gerry actually changed it
squad? Did you just say squad? Yeah? His voice all right.
We talked about the car accident. Got to get that done. But yeah,
look at that picture. Yeah, I mean and actually I have another
picture, but I didn't. I couldn't find it. I was doing the
asmat ops program and at the Navy yard and the marine lieutenant came over.
I forget who that was, and took Michael when he was a little guy,
took him on the boat and uh, you know, was driving by
this and I got one of me and Michael with the towers. I don't
know where the hell it is. We were on the front end of the
boat of the marine six rack On family. That's amazing. Even though Nicky's
got a couple, eh, John, he he did some good work John.
You know, I'll tell you what John worked over there. He was
a quiet guy. Guys used to break his his chops. Uh. We
were the two pollops you know in the in the group, Wellwski too,
yeah, uh but John Uh was a good man. I said I'd take
ten John's over you guys. Yeah. And he was rich. Probably no
problem telling you about how much property he owned out in the Hamptons, Hampton's
upstate. Yeah, you know property in Hampton is at least a sergeant or
a lieutenant on the p D. Is he still around now? He just
passed away. John passed away last year, just two years ago, something
like that. Actually, probably during the winter we went over some queens over
On I think it was over On, you know, near the house for
his wake. Yeah, used to comfort the firehouse. Yeah. John retired
a little bit, yeah early, but yeah, good man, John,
Lieutenant rye back. Thanks for coming on the show. Great stories, right,
I told you two hours goes like this. Look, you're right,
you're right that we were not done. You don't know what time it is?
Right? Time is the time? I know what time, know what
time it is? I do all right, I did too it is time
for the old school chip of the day, the day day. All right,
kids do it? Hey, guys, I don't have too much on
the tips as far as like lat of placements, stretching hose lines. What
what what I got to talk about is is the response is how you guys
get ready for a response. When I used to be in Brooklyn, we
had engines all the way around us and you needed very quick turnout. Nowadays,
and the chaulf is you need a great chauffeur. You need a guy
who knows the area. You need to know, not only around because anybody
can probably look on Google and get a map and it's pretty close to it,
you know, if you're in a far district. But you got to
know your building construction. I still I work once in a while. I
do some pre planning for fire departments out here on the island. I do
some inspections. And building construction is changing. There's a lot more architecture work
being done, newer, newer materials being used, electrical plants being put in,
batteries being put in, and you really got to get out and know
your buildings. I don't know what much more I could say, but just
to be cognizant. Uh, you know, just learn your buildings and uh.
One other thing that when I was covering a lot, I tried to
remember It's very simple. Maybe not be fire matic, but try to remember
the guys you're working with, Like you get a detail, remember their names,
remember their faces, who they are. Maybe they're they're in a neighboring
company, company next to you. Uh, now you'll know when they work
with you a couple of times in your house, you'll know who they are.
That's really about it. I'm not going to tell you how to stretch
a line or like I said, how many you know hose lines that drab
off the rig, what size hose you're going to be using. But you
know, just I feel strongly about the building construction and types of construction you
want to look into because one day you're going to be in there. You
want to know what's going on right that you can't. That's about it.
I'm not gonna anything else. You know, every time there was a there
was a lot of building construction in the last you know, fifteen years,
right, and everyone in the city right when from two thousand and eight,
right, it's crazy. If they were building it, you know, they
had the metal joys, they had you know, the trust constructions, all
that stuff that we never saw in the city. Yeah, if they were
doing it, I have to say. That's one thing that we did was
we did a lot of sids on those buildings because, like you said,
ten years from now, twenty years from now, you know, you can't
see what's in there. And I know on Long Island each depends upon the
township. But they're trying to put up stickers like whether it's a trust roof
trust really? Oh yeah, you know, And guys, that's what I
mean. Look for these signs, look for hey, doesn't have a gas
mean, you know, where's the gas lines? And just get into that
stuff. You know, I know it's not it's not the greatest thing is
putting the fire out. You know, they're going to search up but not
sexy, no, bith. The construction is going to dictate your tactics.
Man, that's it, right, you know, especially the gonzo's got an
old school tip of the day. Holy shit, We've had this discussion of
couple of times. Remember, get up down here you have concrete buildings,
man, versus yes up there? So all right, all right, so
we got a couple of the things. Thanks lou Uh, thank you guys
for having me on. Yeah, hold on, we take care of all
right. Matt Krushia did say Papaveros. Yes, that is the funeral home
that John was in. That was also the funeral home that John Gotti was
laid out in. Oh uh, but before Ganza. We still have to
do the old school say that. All right, there we go, here
we go. The First Responders Center for Excellence is a not for profit organization
dedicated to protecting their lives and livelihoods of first responders. Their education and research
initiatives aim to bring greater awareness and understanding the challenges the health, safety and
well being of firefighters, EMS, personnel, and other first responders too.
They are an affiliate of the National Falling Firefighter Foundation. A great old school
health and safety. To pluck this one out rough you may have heard clean
is the new salty? Getting salty or being salty? Is today a knowledgeable
firefighter into the job worth his salt. Wow, that one plucked it.
That's not bad, brilliant. I don't really like to ever give you any
credit on any of that. But the sheet that they but dis but it's
gonna have a little help. That's I have to give him credit because he
could have took the credit I got about, I got about, I got
about. Give him credit correct, Kevin spoke well at the one of the
nine to eleven UH memorials we had a while back. I remember that,
Yes, but I give him credit for that. So we're gonna give Roofi
a shout out before we do that. I'm gonna let you a little sneak
peek that we're working on. We're working on a new platform, Patreon.
We are gonna have ridiculous content on that. You know, longer do you
have to go trade shows to hear the classes. The classes are going to
be on the website. It's eight ninety five a month, which is nothing.
You spend more of a cup of coffee out in Starbucks than you do.
And you're gonna have content that you cannot get on YouTube or speak or
Spotify. It's gonna be loaded with content, loaded with classes coming soon to
you guys on Patreon. Go ahead, rough, all right, So God
give me my picture please? All right? So this is on Wednesday in
New York City, firefighter donated bone marrow met the five year old Texas boy
who received a life saving gift, Cristiano Free Goalie, ran into the arms
of firefighter Ryan McLain during a ceremony in Brooklyn. The kid's parents also gave
McLean a huge hug. He had been diagnosed with a rare disease that only
a bone marrow transplant could have cured. And that's entined seventy nine of thirty
seven twenty seven battalions. I remember Polypatzos from two eighty eight did that then.
Uh, you know, there was always a list at the medical office
of the guys that did that, and uh, you know, I'm sure
there's a lot of people that are alive today. So outstanding job, brother.
Yeah, and that's a very it's a very painful thing that these guys
though, I hear that. Sh It's very painful, very painful. So
with these guys to give as a fire fire to give in their personal life
like that, kudos to the brothers man, that's fantastic. What else you
got rough, that's a kid. I thought we had the fire five bills
night. Go ahead, John, you're doing that all right. We have
the second firefighter that has passed from the Baltimore job. The other day,
Lieutenant Ronaldo Engine Company forty six and Coup's going to give him the five bills.
Rest in peace, brother h stay safe out there and roof. You
don't know anything about that anymore, but we still praying for you, guys.
Lieutenant right back either he likes to again. Thank you, guys,
Oh, thank you, great show. Nice to your wife for making that
little man k for you on the last minute. Notice too good looks bro,
She's she's a keeper. Good feel and listen, few other bests.
Listen. We had one guy he got the book, one guy who had
five he got five people. I guess you don't want this book for free.
All you gotta do is get five people to subscribe to the YouTube and
I'll put you in a little drawing and I'll pull it out. One guy,
get on if you want a free copy of Chief Leaves book. It
was a great show. He did you guys have a great guy excellent right
all right. On Monday, we got Pete Mslinsky, great guy from two
seventy, big hockey fan. You know what I say about that right down
zone, nobody cares what nobody cares about hockey one and includes everyone. Guy,
Before I go I met a guy who in in where was I?
Uh, he's doing some inspections. And I met a gentleman in Jericho whose
son played with Greco. Is that right? Yeah, we happen to be
talking about the father watches your show. This show, I said, Oh,
I'm gonna be on a Thursday night, so I did a fantastic jo.
Oh by the way, Uh, Anthony just got uh he got picked
up by a team. He's gonna be playing out overseas again. And uh,
you guy's gonna have a little scratch. Doesn't have to sell me his
roleing I fell. We'll see you on Monday. Until then, stay low
and go all right, everybody will see it the big one. Thanks again,
Lou, you got you guys. Thanks everyone, have a good night.