Worcester honors 6 firefighters killed in 1999 warehouse fire with somber ceremony
WORCESTER - A somber ceremony was held Tuesday marking 25 years since six firefighters were killed in the massive Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse fire.
Lt. Thomas Spencer, Lt. Timothy Jackson Sr., Lt. James Lyons III and firefighters Jeremiah Lucey, Paul Brotherton, and Joseph McGuirk became trapped in the fire on December 3, 1999 and were killed.
According to investigators, the fire was started by two homeless people.
Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse fire ceremony
The ceremony was held at the Worcester Fire Department station at 266 Franklin Street which was built at the site of the fire in 2008.
A permanent memorial is outside the fire station. "It really is a memorial that displays the sacrifice that six men made," said Assistant Worcester Fire Chief Adam Roche. "As generations pass, we're getting further and further away from the anniversary of this... it's very important that we don't forget the sacrifices made."
As part of the vigil, a moment of silence was held at 6:13 p.m., which is when the first alarm was sounded for the fire.
Wreaths were also laid in memory of each firefighter, and there was a 21-gun salute.
"I remember the wives of the firefighters coming up to me that night, asking if their husbands were OK. More importantly, I remember how this community came together," Mayor Joseph Petty said at the ceremony.
Ronald DeFusco is a retired Worcester firefighter and responded to the warehouse fire. "It does still haunt me, it does," DeFusco said.
He recalled the desperation to save his colleagues. "They started recovery. They knew that things were tough. So even at that they didn't stop, not one second. Nobody backed up," DeFusco said. "It's a little emotional to know that all the efforts sometimes you don't make it."
Fallen firefighters pop-up exhibit
A pop-up exhibit honoring the fallen firefighters opened Monday at Union Station in Washington Square. It will be open on Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Retired firefighters are managing the exhibit, which tells the story of each firefighter.
Twenty-five years later, the fire remains fresh in the minds of those who were there. "Once the fire started getting going, it was black, black, black smoke it was black as night. They all got lost and they couldn't find their way out," said retired Worcester Fire Lt. John Elliot.
Elliot said the week that followed was very painful. "The next eight days were, they were brutal. We were digging every day for them. Nobody liked to be home. When I was home all I did was cry. I'm getting a little emotional now," Elliot said. "We just dug and tried to find anything we could find to give it back to the family."
"Every one was a family man"
Elliot keeps their memory alive by telling their stories to anyone who will listen.
"Every one of them was a character let me tell you. Every one was a family man. They were the coaches of your basketball team, coaches of your baseball team. The Worcester Fire Department will never forget them," says Elliot.
Firefighter Lucey was actor Denis Leary's cousin. Leary, a Worcester native, also grew up friends with Lt. Spencer.
Inspired by the firefighters' deaths, the actor created the Leary Firefighters Foundation, which raises money and resources for departments around the country.
Seven of the children who lost a father in the fire are no working for the Worcester Fire Department.
