NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — The FDNY shared a photo on its social media pages Saturday afternoon, showing firefighter William Tolley on the day of the September 11th terror attacks.
Tolley, a 14-year veteran and father who fell to his death Thursday while battling a blaze in Queens, was a volunteer firefighter in Hicksville at the time.
When he and his crew saw the burning towers from their firehouse, they rushed to the scene to help, the Facebook post said.
“There was no question as to whether we were going to go there or not. It was a no-brainer. All we wanted to do was help. We had two of our own guys in there and we wanted to do everything that we could. Billy and I, and about five other guys, we were there all night. We didn’t sleep. We just kept searching,” Hicksville Volunteer Fire Department Ex-Captain Jim Fogarty was quoted saying.
“Billy taught me almost everything I know when it comes to firefighting. He loved to teach and he loved to learn. He was very generous on calls, he was always willing to let us try and learn. But more than his role as a Firefighter, I want people to know that he was a wonderful person. He was a hardcore rocker and a Firefighter, with a baby seat in the back of his minivan. Billy touched a lot of people. He was one of those guys who was never in a bad mood. He was always smiling, even if he had something going on, you would never know it. There aren’t too many people like that in the world,” the post continued.
Tolley’s funeral is scheduled for Thursday.
The FDNY Foundation has set up a William N. Tolley’s Children’s Educational Fund. To donate, visit www.fdnyfoundation.org/donate and select the fund from the drop down menu.
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