NYC cops battle flames to save residents, barking dog in Coney Island
The cops, part of the city's new quality of life teams, lived up to their job description — and then some — on Aug. 10, after they spotted a plume of smoke from West 36th Street near Canal Avenue while they were on patrol.
A neighbor helped them locate the burning single family home and get into the backyard, where massive flames were engulfing a wall, the video shows.
5 Police Officer Andy Gao smashes a glass sliding door to get into the burning home.
New York City Police Department
'We saw the fire raging at the back of the house,' Officer Andy Guo, of the 60th Precinct, told The Post.
'There was no time to wait for the fire department,' said Police Officer Chris De Sciora. 'We heard the dog barking. We had to get in by any means possible. The back wall was going up quickly.'
The partners, who both grew up in Brooklyn and graduated from the Police Academy together in 2016, began trying to break down a rear glass sliding door to get inside, the video shows.
5 When the cops got to the Coney Island, home it was partially engulfed in flames.
New York City Police Department
The pup, a golden labradoodle named Sea Biscuit, was wildly barking until his owners woke up.
'Then we heard a gentleman yelling inside,' Guo, 34, said. 'We made a quick decision to just hop right in.'
The video shows Guo shatter the glass with pole and vault inside first, followed by his partner.
5 The dog, Sea Biscuit, was barking steadily during the fire.
'I had to get access to the house,' Guo said. 'My mind and body was just on autopilot. I didn't think too hard, I just had to get in there.'
Once they were inside, they found two men, who were inside sleeping, and led them out of the home.
'They didn't notice the house was on fire,' Guo said. 'I feel like if we had waited, who knows what could have happened?'
5 Officer Andy Guo jumped in first and suffered cuts on his arms.
Obtained by the New York Post
The dog was still barking when the cops got inside.
'We were able to corner the dog,' De Sciora said. 'There was really no time to think. Training and tactics took over.'
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
5 Police Officer Chris De Sciora joined the NYPD because of the Sept. 11 atacks.
Obtained by the New York Post
The residents and the dog were unharmed. Both police officers were treated for smoke inhalation. Guo was also cut from the sliding glass door.
'I got some scratches on my arms,' Guo said. 'I didn't notice it was bleeding.'
De Sciora, 31, who grew up in Bay Ridge, joined the NYPD because of the Sept. 11 terrorism attacks of 2001.
'Even though I was little at the time, I knew that after those tragic events I wanted to do whatever I could to help protect the city I love,' he said.
Guo joined because of a desire to help the community where he grew up, he said.
'At the end of the day for me, I just wanted to help people,' said Guo, who grew up in Canarsie. 'I've always been a Brooklkyn boy. I wanted to give back.'
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New York Post
18 hours ago
- New York Post
NYC cops battle flames to save residents, barking dog in Coney Island
Neither smoke nor flame stopped two NYPD officers from saving two men — and their labradoodle — from a raging fire in Coney Island this week, dramatic video obtained by The Post shows. The cops, part of the city's new quality of life teams, lived up to their job description — and then some — on Aug. 10, after they spotted a plume of smoke from West 36th Street near Canal Avenue while they were on patrol. A neighbor helped them locate the burning single family home and get into the backyard, where massive flames were engulfing a wall, the video shows. 5 Police Officer Andy Gao smashes a glass sliding door to get into the burning home. New York City Police Department 'We saw the fire raging at the back of the house,' Officer Andy Guo, of the 60th Precinct, told The Post. 'There was no time to wait for the fire department,' said Police Officer Chris De Sciora. 'We heard the dog barking. We had to get in by any means possible. The back wall was going up quickly.' The partners, who both grew up in Brooklyn and graduated from the Police Academy together in 2016, began trying to break down a rear glass sliding door to get inside, the video shows. 5 When the cops got to the Coney Island, home it was partially engulfed in flames. New York City Police Department The pup, a golden labradoodle named Sea Biscuit, was wildly barking until his owners woke up. 'Then we heard a gentleman yelling inside,' Guo, 34, said. 'We made a quick decision to just hop right in.' The video shows Guo shatter the glass with pole and vault inside first, followed by his partner. 5 The dog, Sea Biscuit, was barking steadily during the fire. 'I had to get access to the house,' Guo said. 'My mind and body was just on autopilot. I didn't think too hard, I just had to get in there.' Once they were inside, they found two men, who were inside sleeping, and led them out of the home. 'They didn't notice the house was on fire,' Guo said. 'I feel like if we had waited, who knows what could have happened?' 5 Officer Andy Guo jumped in first and suffered cuts on his arms. Obtained by the New York Post The dog was still barking when the cops got inside. 'We were able to corner the dog,' De Sciora said. 'There was really no time to think. Training and tactics took over.' The cause of the fire is under investigation. 5 Police Officer Chris De Sciora joined the NYPD because of the Sept. 11 atacks. Obtained by the New York Post The residents and the dog were unharmed. Both police officers were treated for smoke inhalation. Guo was also cut from the sliding glass door. 'I got some scratches on my arms,' Guo said. 'I didn't notice it was bleeding.' De Sciora, 31, who grew up in Bay Ridge, joined the NYPD because of the Sept. 11 terrorism attacks of 2001. 'Even though I was little at the time, I knew that after those tragic events I wanted to do whatever I could to help protect the city I love,' he said. Guo joined because of a desire to help the community where he grew up, he said. 'At the end of the day for me, I just wanted to help people,' said Guo, who grew up in Canarsie. 'I've always been a Brooklkyn boy. I wanted to give back.'
New York Post
a day ago
- New York Post
Post's beloved City Desk supervisor Myron Rushetzky dead at 73: ‘Part of the fabric of The Post'
Myron Rushetzky — The Post's beloved meticulous, sometimes maddening newsroom support-staff supervisor who churned out generations of ace copy kids — died peacefully Friday in the city he loved. Rushetzky, 73, was known as the gatekeeper of the City Desk — answering phones and announcing callers in his thick Brooklyn accent — over a career that spanned a mind-boggling 40 years. 'He loved The Post,'' said Susan Mulcahy, who started as a copy girl under Rushetzky at the paper in 1978 and went on to work for its famous Page Six gossip gang. 3 Myron Rushetzky has died at the age of 73. New York Post Mulcahy, who recently co-wrote the book 'Paper of Wreckage'' about The Post, which was dedicated to Rushetzky, said he 'was an important contact to make in the City Room because he knew everyone and everybody. 'When you went away on a trip, he'd always demand you bring him back a shirt,'' she recalled. He kept a list that 'on one side [had] people he loaned money to — and a number of people still owe him money,'' Mulcahy said. 'On the other side of the list are all the people who brought him T-shirts. I think I brought him three or four shirts over the years.' Stephen Lynch, editor of The Post's print edition, said, 'Myron mentored an entire generation of Post reporters. 'He would take a 'runner,' help them, mold them, cajole them — then would advocate fiercely for them to be given full-time jobs,'' Lynch said of Rushetzky's former underlings — who include now-New York Times White House Correspondent Maggie Haberman. 'Nothing made him prouder than watching one of his team graduate to the News Desk, and nothing made the paper better.' 3 Rushetzky worked at The Post for 40 years before retiring in 2013. NY Post Brian Zak Post Deputy News Copy Chief Milton Goldstein started out as a copy kid along with Rushetzky in 1973 — and was by his side when he died at Manhattan's New York University Langone of the glandular cancer adenocarcinoma. 'I sat down, and I'm sharpening pencils, and Myron comes up to me and introduces himself, and 52 years later, here we are,'' Goldstein said. 'Did you know he had a degree in civil engineering from the City College of New York?' the longtime Postie said. He said Rushetzky was inspired to go to school for engineering because he grew up in Bath Beach, Brooklyn — watching as Robert Moses built the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge nearby. Rushetzky was also a sports lover and became the editor of the section for his college newspaper, the Campus, Goldstein said. 3 Susan Mulcahy, a copy girl under Rushetzky in 1978, co-wrote a book titled 'Paper of Wreckage'' which was dedicated to him, saying he 'was an important contact to make in the City Room because he knew everyone and everybody.'' NY Post Brian Zak 'He never got a job with an engineering firm,'' Goldstein said. 'He fell in love with newspapers.'' Rushetzky kept his copy-kid crew in close check at The Post — sometimes rubbing editors the wrong way when they wanted to poach them to run on a story while he tried to run the City Desk phone. But that was only to a point — he also loved to see them succeed, former coworkers said. Rushetzky was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year but did not want to make a big deal about it and have it widely shared, Mulcahy said. Goldstein noted that former Post Editor Ken Chandler and ex-Managing Editor Joe Robinowitz visited Rushetzky on Tuesday, three days before he died — 'and it made Myron's day, that they cared enough about a desk assistant. 'Myron was part of the fabric of The Post,'' Goldstein said. He also was the heart of 'Post Nation,'' a tremendously long list of former and current outlet employees whom he kept together with an e-mail chain — and birthday cards every year, including to their kids. The tributes to its leader poured in Friday, with one calling Rushetzsky 'a true Post legend.'' 'Hopefully, Post Nation will survive, but without Myron, it will not be the same,'' Mulcahy wrote in an e-mail to the masses. As for Rushetzky, he already wrote his epitaph long ago — signing off with the quote from Washington Post columnist Mary McGrory on every e-mail: 'I should confess, I have always felt a little sorry for people who didn't work for newspapers.''
New York Post
2 days ago
- New York Post
Recently ID'd 9/11 victim remembered by sisters as 'larger than life' figure
It took 24 years for this 9/11 family to finally get a little solace. But Ryan Fitzgerald's sisters are grateful to the city workers who, using only a tiny bone fragment, were recently able to identify their brother — a 'larger than life' figure who inspired one of them to become an FDNY firefighter. 'He was one of the very few who always told me … you'll be able to do it and you can do it,' Elizabeth Parks, a Queens firefighter since 2016, told The Post this week about her older brother encouraging her to pursue her dream. Advertisement 7 Ryan Fitzgerald worked in the South Tower of the World Trade Center. Voices Center for Resilience 'He would tell me all the time that I can do it and I'll get it someday. And I knew when I had the opportunity I had to give it my all, and I'm so thankful I did,' she said. 'I just hope that he's proud, proud of me.' Fitzgerald's remains were officially identified on Aug. 7, bringing a wave of emotions to his parents who never stopped talking about their 26-year-old boy, and to the pair of younger sisters who idolized him. Advertisement 'For my parents finding anything was, in a way, bringing him home or like bringing him back with the family and where he belongs,' Caroline Parks, who was around 10 when terrorists attacked on Sept. 11, 2001. A small fragment of bone found on West Street and Liberty Avenue was matched to Fitzgerald thanks to advanced DNA technology used by the city's Office of Chief Medical Examiner, which is still working to identify remains of 9/11 victims found in the Ground Zero wreckage. Elizabeth, of Bayside, and Caroline, of New Jersey, provided their DNA a couple months ago, but didn't think much of it at the time. 7 Fitzgerald was identified from a small fragment of bone thanks to advanced DNA technology. Voices Center for Resilience Advertisement Weeks later, a medical examiner staffer called their mother, Diane Parks, to deliver the news she'd waited more than two decades to receive. When she got off the phone, she looked like a 'ghost,' recalled Caroline, a 33-year-old project manager in advertising. 'It felt like the 11th was just yesterday,' added Elizabeth, who was around 16 years old at the time of the attacks. 'It was like the last 24 years has just been … our lives have been on pause.' 7 Fitzgerald's death inspired his sister, Liz Parks, to join the FDNY. FDNY Advertisement The family's ordeal began that clear morning when Fitzgerald arrived early for work as a foreign currency trader at Fiduciary Trust International on the 97th floor of the south tower. He'd just gotten a promotion and wanted to make a good impression, Elizabeth said. When the first plane spiraled into the north tower, Ryan called his mother to let her know he was alright and the plan was to leave the building. Based on where his remains were found, Elizabeth believes he was on his way down the stairs when the skyscraper came down. 'I always thought he probably never made it down and now I wonder how far down he made it,' she said. 7 Parks thinks that her brother was on his way down the stairs when the tower went down based on where his remains were found. Ryan grew up in Queens before his family moved to the village of Floral Park when he started high school. He played baseball, basketball and golf, and often went to Yankees games to watch his favorite player, star shortstop Derek Jeter. Caroline remembered climbing on her 'larger than life' brother, who was about 6-foot-3, and having him carry her everywhere. 'He really was the most laid back, chill, just kind of fun-loving guy,' she said. Advertisement About eight months before he was killed, Ryan moved to Manhattan, where he enjoyed taking his girlfriend, Darci, out to dinner at a variety of his familiar spots where they knew who he was and 'treated him like a king,' Elizabeth said. 7 Fitzgerald grew up in Queens before moving out to Floral Park on Long Island. Voices Center for Resilience 'But he was very kind, very kind hearted as well. He never put himself above anybody,' she said. Even into his mid-20s, Ryan had remained close with a group of friends from elementary school, and they and other loyal buddies still keep in touch with his family and go out about once a year to commemorate the loss. Advertisement Elizabeth said she leaned on the memory of her brother — who was always her biggest cheerleader — when pursuing her dream of becoming an FDNY firefighter. 'Ryan was without a doubt my entire heart throughout the whole process … even up until today just knowing in the back of my mind I think he would be so proud of,' said Elizabeth, who started as an FDNY EMT in 2010 before she began fighting fires in 2016. 'He was so proud of all of us, but he was absolutely the reason why I strive for what I did and was able to complete because of him.' 7 Fitzgerald moved to Manhattan about eight months he was killed. Obtained by the NY Post Advertisement Along with being assigned to a Jamaica station house, she is also on the ceremonial unit that participates in various events, including funerals and memorial services for firefighters that have died from 9/11 related illnesses. In the immediate aftermath of the attacks, both sisters held out hope that their brother was in a hospital bed, waiting to be reunited with his family, while his then-girlfriend, Darci, put up heartwrenching 'Missing' posters with his picture and her phone number. 'You know it's never gonna happen, but it could be like, 'oh, what if he comes around the corner one day,'' Caroline said. 'You kind of tap into that little childhood mindset of thinking sometimes so this just really brings that to like a closure for me.' Advertisement 7 Shortly after the attacks, both sisters hoped that their brother was still alive. Voices Center for Resilience But the sisters said that their brother finally being identified, and his remains being returned to them, also raises more questions about his final moments. 'It's just another piece of the puzzle that we now have, that we now continue to live with,' Caroline said. 'We have such a strong system of support because Ryan was so well known but everyone's like, 'oh now you have some closure' but we don't,' added Elizabeth. 'I just have new questions and thoughts, but at least it's a different feeling to have a little piece of him that we can honor.' She hopes the 24-year revelation will serve as a message to other 9/11 families longing for their loved ones to be identified to never give up. Ryan and two women — Palm Springs, California grandmother Barbara Keating and another victim whose family did not want her to be publicly identified — were the 1,651st, 1,652nd and 1,653rd victims tied to remains last week. That leaves another 1,100 victims that still need to be identified. 'There hasn't ever been one day that my mom and dad haven't spoken about Ryan, whether it was a happy memory or just wondering if they'll ever find him or just wondering what ever happened,' Elizabeth said. 'You can't lose hope even though you may have given up years ago.'
