Yonkers Firefighters Deliver Christmas Miracle by Saving Life and Bronx River Road Building By HEZI ARIS

 HEZI ARIS ARCHIVES,  EMERGENCY SERVICES,  HEALTH,  YONKERS, NY 14 COMMENTS
Yonkers UFOA-logoYONKERS, NY — December 25, 2015 — The six-story building was threatened by a fire that emanated from Apartment 3D of the 355 Bronx River Road apartment complex. The call received at about 10:05am, Christmas Day. Firefighters from Ladder 73 and Engine 313, located on Kimball Avenue, were first to arrive at 10:09 am, four minutes after being dispatched. Firefighters from Ladder 73 forced entry to the locked apartment door as Engine 313 began the process of stretching a hoseline to the burning apartment. Prior to a hoseline being put into place, Lieutenant Daniel Nee crawled past the heavy fire and proceeded to the rear bedroom where the victim was trapped. In heavy smoke conditions, Lieutenant Nee shared his air-mask with the victim as he rescued her from the burning apartment. Shortly thereafter, Firefighters Timothy O’Connell. Richard Padilla and Gerard Boyle from Engine 313 were able to place their hoseline into position, and made an aggressive attack to extinguish the fire. The apartment suffered heavy fire damage and the remainder of the building suffered smoke and water damage. There was significant smoke and window damage to 3D, and water damage in 3D, 2D, and 1D. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Both Lieutenant Nee and the victim were transported to Jacobi Hospital in The Bronx, New York, where they are each being treated for smoke inhalation and elevated carbon-monoxide levels. Lieutenant Nee is a six-year member of the Yonkers Fire Department and a USMC Iraq War Veteran.
Notably, Nee was laid off during a City of Yonkers budget crisis in 2010, and Yonkers Fire Officers have not received a cost of living increase in salary from the City of Yonkers in seven years! The Uniformed Fire Officers Association, who did not endorse Mayor Mike Spano in his most recent run for office, have been mired in a protracted contract negotiation stalemate with Mayor Spano and recently filed for impasse. While the larger Yonkers Firefighters Union received a 10-year contractual agreement 9-months ago, Mayor Mike Spano has been insistent that he will not grant a similar agreement to the Fire Officers unless they agree to contractual language that would gut the longstanding line-of-duty injury protections that have been in place. Yonkers Fire Officers are willing to accept the exact same contractual language that the Firefighters Union accepted nine months ago, including their agreement that applies to line-of-duty injuries. However, Mayor Mike Spano has demanded that in order to receive the same cost-of-living increase in salary granted to Firefighters, the Fire Officers Association must accept significantly less protection from line-of-duty injuries than what has been granted to Yonkers Firefighters. Today’s events are a stark example of why the Uniformed Fire Officers Association is unable to allow the contractual protections for their members injured in the line-of-duty to be gutted by Mayor Mike Spano for political and/or personal reasons.
SOURCE: Assistant Chief Robert Antulov, Battalion 2
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Comments 14

  1. If you notice, 99% of YFD members do not attack other city departments unless attached first, why? because we are all in the same boat.
    But their are plenty of inside attacks between the “YFD clans”. If the cops, firefighters, teachers and CSEA & DPW all stick together and fight the true enemy, City Hall and it’s croonies we would be unstoppable.
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  2. John McGrail's Proudest other son
    *Long time reader, first time writer* 
    God bless the Yonkers Fire Department! And no offense to any other house, but ESPECIALLY Kimball 13!
    Long Live the 313! My God I will NEVER FORGET what those men did for my family and I!
    That engine / company pushed an Empress Ambulance up my hill (one of this city’s many, but close to steepest without a doubt), during the harshest time, in the nastiest of ever blizzards of ’96. Remember, The one that had a good 6″ of Ice under 4′ of snow.. Anyway, 13 Slammed that God Damn ambulance right up the hill and past my house! 
    My grandfather had layed fighting the widowmaker for the previous 6 minutes… 
    Due to that effort alone, my family and I got to spend 5 more days with him alive, he was able to kiss us all goodbye, told me to stop screwing around and “at least screw some floosies” and he was able to hold my grandmothers hand until he left us till next time. 
    None of that would have happened without the men of Firehouse 13 on that day. 
    I thank you endlessly from the bottom of my heart. 
    Merry Christmas Yonkers Fire Department.
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  3. Thank You!
    Thank you Yonkers Bravest. We are so lucky to have such fine people protecting us. I printed this story out for my grabdchildren. Mr. Nee and his men are a fine example of what is good in this world.
    Merry Christmas and please know how loved you all are by so many Yonkers residents.
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  4. 4 min response time! ANY MORE TIME AND THIS PERSON DIES! MIKE SPANO HAS ATTACKED THE YFD CONTINUOUSLY!
    HE HAS TRIED TO CUT MANPOWER AND EQUIPMENT CONTINUOUSLY! DO YOU GET IT! ANY LONGER AND THAT PERSON IS DEAD! WAKE UP! HOW CAN THIS CITY CONTINUE TO ADD HOTELS, BUSINESSES, 25 STORY APARTMENT BUILDINGS AND NEVER ADD ANY MANPOWER OR EQUIPMENT TO THE YFD! ITS PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE! PEOPLE ARE GONNA DIE. FIREFIGHTERS ARE GONNA DIE TRYING TO DO MORE AND MORE! GIVE THE GUYS CREDIT FOR AN AWESOME JOB TODAY! NOT MANY PEOPLE CAN DO WHAT THERSE GUYS DID TODAY! GOD BLESS THE YFD. SOMEONE HAD A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS TODAY! THEIR GIFT WAS LIFE! SHAME ON YOU MAYOR MIKE SPANO!
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