PATERSON FIRE HISTORY
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  • NOTABLE FIREFIGHTERS
    • CALAMITA FAMILY
    • CAPTAIN JOHN WEBER
    • CUSACK FAMILY
    • FLEMING FAMILY
    • GERARD DUGAN
    • HANCOCK FAMILY
    • HENRY OTIS HARRIS
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    • JOSEPH DAYSPRING
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    • McLAUGHLIN FAMILY
    • SALMANOWITZ BROTHERS
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  • TAKING THE HEAT BOOK
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  • AUXILIARY FIRE DEPARTMENT
  • EXEMPT ASSOCIATION
    • EXEMPT 1892 BALL
    • EXEMPT BY-LAWS 1902
  • EXEMPT HOME & RELICS
  • FMBA / PFA
    • FMBA BY-LAWS
    • FMBA 1949 FOLLIES
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    • 1936 JANUARY PICTORIAL
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    • 1937 ANNUAL BALL
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    • 1939 ANNUAL BALL
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    • 1972 ANNUAL BALL
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  • CITY OF PATERSON

Meyer Brothers Department Store Fire
​January 17, 1991

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January 17 Herald courtesy Dennis Morrison
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From the Paterson Fire Journal:
​

On Jan. 17, 1991, a general alarm fire broke out at 161 Main Street - the building that once housed the Meyer Brothers department store - and claimed the life of a Paterson firefighter. 
The body of John A. Nicosia, 28, a member of Engine 4, was recovered two days later.

From the old department store, "the fire spread to a second building and there was a minor blow-out of windows and a large ball of fire," according to the U.S. Fire Administration. "There was a roll call and head count taken at this time and it was determined that Firefighter Nicosia was missing. "Search and rescue procedures began immediately. The search continued for two days until Firefighter Nicosia's body was found in the basement of the initial structure."
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Marty Pelta photo
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Truck 1 on Main Street south of Van Houten Street
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Engine 4 was John Nicosia's company
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E5 Thibault Telesquirt - Engine Rear of 4 is at left

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Herald courtesy Dennis Morrison
ADDITIONAL PHOTOS
Click Here
CLICK HERE
​From the New York Times on January 18, 1991

A fire raged out of control throughout the day yesterday in downtown Paterson, N.J., destroying at least 15 stores and casting a pall of black smoke over the old industrial city of 149,000 people. At 5 P.M., an exhausted Mayor William J. Pascrell Jr. said the fire "is contained but not under control." By late last night the fire still was not completely out. The search for a missing firefighter continued into the night along the block and a half of smoldering ruins.

"We know he went in there, but with collapsing walls and ceilings, we don't know what happened," said Mr. Pascrell. The smoke was so thick, he said, that the
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Aerial Ladder of Truck 1 - At top is Tower ladder from Wayne, NJ - Bill Tompkins Photo
​firefighters could not see even with their lights. Officials did not know what caused the fire, which broke out shortly before 6 A.M. in Underground II, a clothing store at 161 Main Street in what had once been Meyer Brothers, a major department store. Whipped by strong winds, the fire spread rapidly up and down the stores lining the street. The missing firefighter, who was identified as John Nicosia, 27 years old, had entered the clothing store with several others, but failed to return when they were driven out by the heat and smoke, the Mayor said. He had been a firefighter about five years, a fire official said.

By midmorning virtually all of the city's firefighters were at the scene and calls went out to a dozen surrounding towns in Passaic, Essex and Bergen Counties for additional units. By midafternoon nearly 400 firefighters were at the scene. The fire did not threaten any residential areas. "That whole block is gone," said James Miller, the manager of the Furniture King on Main Street beyond the fire. "We were up on the roof before -- we're in a four-story building -- and we could feel the heat. It was very, very intense." As the firefighters battled the blaze along Main Street, the fire ignited the roofs of other commercial buildings to the east along Washington Street, which continued to burn into the evening. 

Several firefighters were treated for minor injuries and smoke inhalation. Mayor Pascrell was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center for treatment of smoke inhalation and released. Mr. Pascrell said the initial damage estimate, not including the contents of the stores, was between $13 million and $15 million. "We're talking about a major disaster here," the Mayor said. "It's devastating, but we'll come back."
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Janet Chris photo
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Courtesy Sharon Woodruff
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E1 Emergency One pumper and E8 ALF Telesquirt
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Engine 8 ALF Telesquirt
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Demolition and Search
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Van Houten Street Engine 4 - Janet Chris photo
Peter Danzo photos  Click here

Malzone photos - Click to enlarge

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January 19, 1991 - McGuire Collection

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Engine 4 at Main and Van Houten Streets -- Marty Pelta Photo
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Engine 6 E-One Pumper
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Engine 6 E-One Pumper
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Engine 6 E-One Pumper
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E5 Telesquirt at Ellison and Washington Streets
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E5 Telesquirt at Ellison and Washington Streets
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Engine 8 - Aux FF Vincent Marchese exiting building
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Aftermath - Recovery
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Assistant Chief Joe Forbes
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Click photos below by Captain Frank Malzone to enlarge

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January 19 Herald
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Cover Story
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Hancock Collection
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Nylon lines, Nomex hoods, name tag and detector are safety innovations
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January 17, 1992: Remembrance from the Herald news
Memorial Service at St. Gerard's Church
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Courtesy Dennis Morrison
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  • HOME
  • OVERVIEW
    • FIRST CENTURY
    • EVENTS 1890-1894
    • EVENTS 1895-1899
    • EVENTS 1900-1910
    • EVENTS 1911-1919
    • EVENTS 1920-1939
    • EVENTS 1940-1959
    • EVENTS 1960-1979
    • EVENTS 1980-1999
    • EVENTS 2000-2019
    • EVENTS 2020-2023
  • FIREFIGHTERS
  • CHIEF ENGINEERS
    • ASSISTANT CHIEFS
    • DEPUTY CHIEFS
    • BATTALION CHIEFS
    • CHIEF GIGS
  • THE SUPREME SACRIFICE
    • MEMORIAL SERVICE
  • OBITUARIES / DEATHS
    • 1889-1919 DEATHS
    • 1920-1939 DEATHS
    • 1940-1959 DEATHS
    • 1960-1969 DEATHS
    • 1970-1979 DEATHS
    • 1980-1999 DEATHS
    • 2000-2009 DEATHS
    • 2010 AND LATER
  • NOTABLE FIREFIGHTERS
    • CALAMITA FAMILY
    • CAPTAIN JOHN WEBER
    • CUSACK FAMILY
    • FLEMING FAMILY
    • GERARD DUGAN
    • HANCOCK FAMILY
    • HENRY OTIS HARRIS
    • ISAAC FELICIANO
    • JOHN GILMORE
    • JOSEPH DAYSPRING
    • KEARNEY-FAMILY
    • MARIANI FAMILY
    • McLAUGHLIN FAMILY
    • SALMANOWITZ BROTHERS
    • THE SIMONTONS
    • THE SWEENEYS
  • NOTABLE FIRES/INCIDENTS
  • SPECIAL OP EVENTS
  • TAKING THE HEAT BOOK
  • HISTORICAL REVIEWS
  • 1907 GUARDIAN
  • 1936 HEARD & SEEN COLUMN
  • FIREHOUSE PHOTOS / FACTS
  • SPECIAL OPERATIONS
  • EMS
    • EMS ROSTER
  • COMPANY & FH HISTORY
  • COMMUNICATIONS / FA
    • FIRE BOX LISTS
    • FIRE BOXES & STANCHIONS
    • EVRS STATION LIST
  • FIRE VIDEOS 1991-2011
  • FIRE VIDEOS 2014-2022
  • DOCUDRAMAS
  • APPARATUS
  • APPARATUS VIDEOS
  • NOTABLE EVENTS INDEX
    • PFD STORIES
    • APPARATUS NOTABLES
    • APPTS & PROMOTIONS
    • AWARDS
    • 1960 CHIEF SELECTION
    • GRAND STREET RIOT 1917
    • GROUND ZERO
    • MILITARY
    • PARADES PAID DEPT
    • RED MASS
    • RESCUES
    • RETIREMENTS
    • SISTER LORETTA
    • SPORTS
    • THEATRE DETAIL
  • MEMORABILIA
  • PATCHES DECALS LOGOS SHIRTS
  • WALLPAPER
  • DEPARTMENT PETS
  • TRAINING
  • VOLUNTEER DEPARTMENT
    • 1821 - 1854 HISTORY
    • 1815-1890 VOLUNTEER HISTORY
    • 1888 HISTORICAL SUMMARY
    • LOOKING BACKWARDS
    • VOLUNTEER PARADES
    • ANNUAL REPORTS
    • VOLUNTEER CHIEFS >
      • CHIEF ELECTIONS
      • CHIEF BIOS
    • VOLUNTEER PROFILES
    • ANDREW MOSER
    • ENGINE CO APPARATUS LIST
    • OLD GOOSENECK
    • JEFFERS STEAMER
    • VOLUNTEER COMPANIES
  • AUXILIARY FIRE DEPARTMENT
  • EXEMPT ASSOCIATION
    • EXEMPT 1892 BALL
    • EXEMPT BY-LAWS 1902
  • EXEMPT HOME & RELICS
  • FMBA / PFA
    • FMBA BY-LAWS
    • FMBA 1949 FOLLIES
  • BALLBOOKS
    • 1909 BALL BOOK
    • 1916 BALL BOOK
    • 1918 BALL BOOK
    • 1921 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1923 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1928 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1935 PFD BOOSTER
    • 1936 JANUARY PICTORIAL
    • 1936 DECEMBER PICTORIAL
    • 1937 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1938 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1939 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1941 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1942 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1943 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1944 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1945 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1946 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1947 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1948 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1949 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1950 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1951 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1952 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1953 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1954 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1955 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1956 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1957 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1958 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1959 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1960 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1961 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1962 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1963 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1964 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1965 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1966 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1967 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1968 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1969 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1970 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1971 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1972 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1973 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1975 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1976 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1977 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1979 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1980 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1981 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1982 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1983 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1984 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1985 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1986 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1987 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1988 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1989 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1990 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1991 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1992 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1993 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1994 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1995 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1996 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1997 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1998 ANNUAL BALL
    • 1999 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2000 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2001 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2002 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2003 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2004 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2005 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2010 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2011 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2014 ANNUAL BALL
    • 2016 ANNUAL BALL
  • ANNUAL REPORTS
  • PFH CONTRIBUTORS
  • ORAL HISTORY
  • STATISTICS
  • CONTACT
  • CITY OF PATERSON