BENSONHURST'S PREMIER NEWS BLOG

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At about 6:30 a.m. this morning a three-alarm fire burned through a three-story Borough Park home at 1029 42nd Street, near New Utrecht Avenue.

The fire apparently started in the basement of the residence. More than 150 firefighters fought the major blaze.

“I was sleeping. Next thing I know, everyone was yelling, ‘Smoke!’” said 30-year building resident and owner, Riccardo Grey to DNAinfo.

He made a dash downstairs to check on his 2-year-old pit bull.  When he opened the door, a cloud of smoke penetrated the room. He had to run out and has not been able to find the dog since.

Six people were injured, including five firemen. And all 17 residents of the building who were home at the time of the fire are now homeless.

The fire was under control at about 8:30 a.m.

From the offices of Congressman Michael Grimm:

BROOKLYN, NY – Today, Rep. Michael G. Grimm (R,C-Brooklyn/S.I.) and State Senator Marty Golden (R,C,I – Brooklyn) sent a letter to Community Board 10 Chairwoman Joanne Seminara in support of naming the northeast corner of 5th Avenue and 85th Street “Firefighter Michael G. Behette 9/11 Memorial Way.”  Michael Behette was a Dyker Heights resident and firefighter who died last month from a 9/11-related cancer. His family has requested the street naming in his honor, and Rep. Grimm and Senator Golden are lending their full support.

“Michael Behette was a true American hero who bravely rushed into a dust cloud of danger when others ran away,” said Rep. Grimm. “His selfless love for our city, for others, and for his profession as NYC fire fighter ultimately cost him his life, and that should never be forgotten. It is with great privilege that I join Senator Golden in support of naming this memorial after our hometown hero, Michael Behette, so that we will never forget his inspiring story or the sacrifices he made on our behalf,” said Rep. Grimm.

“Firefighter Michael Behette was an example to us all.  His dedication to the recovery efforts is a reminder of the service and sacrifice of our bravest to help move our city forward after we were attacked.  Michael gave everything for his city, state, and nation, and today I join with Congressman Grimm in calling for our city to remember and honor his ultimate sacrifice by this memorial on 85th Street.  My thoughts and prayers continue to be with his family, and I call on all to remember that while all gave some in those days and months, some, like Michael, gave all,” said Senator Golden.

Michael Behette was assigned to Ladder 172 in Bensonhurst. When the towers were hit, Behette was on vacation in Florida. Unable to get a flight home, he drove straight to Ground Zero where he worked for the next 31 days in rescue and recovery operations.  He stayed on site for six more months. He was diagnosed in 2011 and passed on September 17th, 2012 from lung cancer, which is believed to have been caused from exposure to the toxins at the WTC site.

Rep. Grimm and his staff have met with members of the Behette family who brought the matter to their attention, as well as helped the family obtain the application for the street naming.  Rep. Grimm and Senator Golden have written the attached letter of support to be submitted today with the family’s application.

A car collision involving a driver going the wrong-way on the Belt Parkway is suspected to be behind a major accident that occurred earlier this morning.

Eleven drivers were injured at around 6:30 a.m. near exit 5. The collision shut down all east-bound lanes and two west-bound lanes.

Three cars were involved in the pile-up; one was a large white van carrying several passengers. Firefighters and the NYPD were able to get all of the victims out of their cars. Thus far, no deaths have been reported, according to the New York Post.

This is a breaking news story and may contain inaccuracies. We will update it as more information becomes available. If anyone has more information or additional photos, please send them to LVladimirova (at) bensonhurstbean (dot) com.

"NYPD - Blue" via Flickr by Alejandro Mejía Greene

On October 10, 2010, at 20th Avenue and 65th Street, Brooklyn firefighter Pat Quagliariello struck and killed 25-year-old Guatemalan immigrant Manuel Tzajguachiac. He immediately fled the scene.

Last week, Quagliariello pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor of fleeing the scene of a crime and received a slap-on-the-wrist plea deal. His sentence includes speaking at 35 high schools about driving safety and accident prevention. He does not have to serve any jail time.

The firefighter was texting and speeding in his BMW SUV when he struck Tzajguachiac, who was crossing the street. He surrendered to police four hours later, after he stopped to pick up his brother, NYPD detective Anthony Quagliariello. When questioned by officers at the 62nd Precinct, he refused a breathalyzer test.

The accident was captured by a nearby surveillance camera.

Quagliariello is assigned to Ladder 172, located a few blocks from the scene of the crash. He was initially suspended for 30 days without pay and has been on desk duty since the investigation began.

According the Daily News, he has a rap sheet for a 1992 felony attempted assault and served one day in jail and five years’ probation. His EMT certification was also suspended in 2005 for a year because he did not reveal his conviction when applying for the certification.

Reader Rob Abruzzese snapped these pics late last night at the corner of Bay 29th Street and Benson Avenue.

Rob says he was woken up at around 2:30 a.m. by the sound of breaking glass.

“I went out to see what was going on and there were about 10-15 fire trucks and police cars responding to a fire,” Rob told Bensonhurst Bean. “It was on a building Bay 29th St on the corner of Benson Ave. The apartments that took the brunt of the damage were directly on the corner of the building in the 4th and 5th floors.”

Fortunately the consensus among bystanders, as well as an EMT Rob spoke to, was that no one was seriously hurt in the early morning blaze.

“I asked a couple people on the street and one EMT if anybody was hurt and the general answer was probably not (nobody knew for sure).”

This is a breaking news story and may contain inaccuracies. We will update it as more information becomes available. If anyone has more information or additional photos, please send them to jteutonico [at] bensonhurstbean [dot] com.

The following is a press release from the office of U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler:

9/11 Health Bill Authors Applaud STAC Recommendation to Add Coverage for Cancers Under Zadroga Act

New York, NY – Today, the Science/Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) of the World Trade Center Health Program voted to add certain types of cancers for coverage under the program. U.S. Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), and Peter King (R-NY), authors of H.R. 847, the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, lauded today’s real progress toward inclusion of cancers under their legislation and issued the following joint statement: Continue Reading »

Source: _PaulS_ via Flickr

The following is a press release from the office of U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler:

New York, NY – U.S. Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), and Peter King (R-NY), authors of H.R. 847, the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, issued the following joint statement in response to the publication today of e-mail communications by members of the World Trade Center Science/Technical Advisory Committee (STAC), showing that the Committee is making progress toward advocating that cancers be covered under the Zadroga Act: Continue Reading »

In the above video, posted on website Politics On The Hudson, State Senator Diane Savino speaks at a rally for the New York State Professional Firefighters Association outside the State Capitol in Albany.

Savino, a former labor leader, defends public pensions and comments on the state of the American labor movement in what blogger Joseph Spector describes as a fiery speech. Continue Reading »