NY Daily News – March 22, 2017
by ESHA RAY KERRY BURKE DENIS SLATTERY
A pair of humble firefighters and a dogged detective honored Tuesday said their acts of bravery and heroism were just part of the job.
“Every day police or firefighters put on their uniforms they display heroism,” FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro said during a ceremony at Brooklyn Borough Hall honoring firefighters Todd Brenner and Andrew Scharf and NYPD Lieutenant John Russo.
“The terms the Finest and Bravest could be interchangeable,” Nigro added.
Brenner and Scharf, both from Ladder 176, received citations from Borough President Eric Adams for rescuing a man trapped in a burning Brownsville church earlier this month.
The pair performed a harrowing roof-rope rescue, rappelling down the side of the burning structure to pull the man from a window as smoke and flames surrounded them.
“It’s nice to get everyone together to just recognize the stuff we do on a regular basis,” Brenner said. “It’s not anything anyone else wouldn’t have done. We’re trained. When your number is up to do it, you just do it.”
t. Russo was honored for his role in identifying the man charged with killing jogger Karina Vetrano near her Howard Beach home last August.
Russo spent hours of his own time piecing together the puzzle that led him to 20-year-old Chanel Lewis, who was arrested in February.
“I consider John a friend. John is a dedicated member of the service,” NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill said. “This wasn’t when he was working, this was when he was off. He’s a cop 24-7, a cop through and through.”
Russo brushed off the praise and said he was just glad to be in good company.
“I’m proud and humbled to be beside these firefighters,” he told the Daily News. “Proud of the work the fire department has done and myself.”
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