Uniformed Fire Officers Association Medal

Lieutenant John P. Browne
Battalion 18 (assigned)
Ladder Company 56 (detailed)

February 27, 2002, 0913 hours
Box 75-3318
2413 Walton Avenue, Bronx

Appointed to the FDNY on August 3, 1985. Previously assigned to Engine 225 and Ladder 107. Member of the Columbia Association, Emerald Society and Company Officers Association. Cited for bravery three times previously. Attended the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Resides in East Atlantic Beach, Long Island, with his wife, Sharon.

Morning at the firehouse is basic. If you’re coming from home, you bring doughnuts and a couple of newspapers; at least two papers. Otherwise, you’ll have three guys reading over your shoulder waiting for you to finish or put it down. It was just such a morning for Lieutenant John Browne, who was covering in Ladder 56 when the early-morning coffee was dropped as they were thrown into a whirlwind.

Lieutenant John P. Browne (center) with members of Ladder 56. photo courtesy of Lieutenant John P. Browne

Ladder 56 was assigned second-due and members were pulling into Walton Avenue when the apparatus was blocked by a street sweeper. Lieutenant Browne proceeded on foot with his experienced and aggressive forcible entry team--FF William Albin, the irons man, and FF Brian Browne, the can man. When they arrived at the front of the building, the first floor of the three-story multiple dwelling was fully involved in fire and all the windows had iron bars. Window bars are very effective in preventing theft, but they are equally effective in trapping occupants and Firefighters in the event of a fire.

The goal of the second-due Truck is to search above the fire, normally via the interior stairs. Because the fire had control of the first floor, Ladder 56 members had to find an alternate route. Lieutenant Browne noticed that the adjoining house was connected to the fire building at the porch, so he ordered a portable ladder raised to the roof of the porch to give him and his forcible entry team access to rooms above the fire.

When Lieutenant Browne and FFs Albin and Browne got onto the porch roof, the conditions on the porch below them were worsening. Flames were lapping around the edges of the roof, endangering their already-tenuous position. Time was of the essence; Lieutenant Browne ordered the forcible entry team to force the window bars to gain entry.

When the bars were removed and Ladder 56 members were able to enter the window, the conditions they encountered were extreme. The super-heated gases raged above them and the fear of a flashover was very real. Flashover is the instantaneous combustion of all flammable surfaces and firefighting procedures explain that the survival of Firefighters is possible only if they are within 10 feet of their escape point. Lieutenant Browne and his team were well aware of this, but they continued their search.

Shortly after entering the room, FF Browne found the unconscious body of Servino Martinez, who weighed approximately 300 lbs. Lieutenant Browne and FFs Browne and Albin struggled to drag the victim to the window.

Lieutenant Browne then returned to complete the primary search. The fire now was extending up the unenclosed stair and the heat conditions were going to force everyone off the floor above. At this point, the Officer decided to make one more push into the Deadman’s room, which adjoined the room he had entered. It’s called the Deadman’s room because, traditionally, in the event of fire, those trapped in this room usually cannot escape. Lieutenant Browne knew this, but he also realized that if the room lit up behind him, he would be trapped as well because of the window bars.

In spite of these factors and without hesitation and the possibility of any other possible means of escape, Lieutenant Browne crawled beneath the intense heat and made his way into the far room. Fortunately for Carlos Garcia--who was lying motionless on the floor--Lieutenant Browne would not be deterred.

The Lieutenant quickly dragged Mr. Garcia back to their only means of escape and together, with FFs Browne and Albin, assisted both Mr. Garcia and Mr. Martinez from the smoke-filled rooms and into Ladder 33’s Tower Ladder bucket and to safety. Luckily, they were able to do this just as their air cylinders expired.

The Lieutenant is quick to credit his senior crew, which made the operation less risky and complicated. And, through the sheer determination and superior leadership of Lieutenant Browne, these two men are alive today. Lieutenant Browne’s actions and courage epitomize the finest characteristics of the New York City Fire Department. For these reasons, he is presented with the Uniformed Fire Officers Association Medal today. —CB and SB