When a homeless man died in the cold and no one claimed his body for a proper burial, it was the firefighters of a South Bronx station house that came to his final rescue.
The members of Engine Co. 82 and Ladder 31 at the Intervale Avenue firehouse were modest about their efforts.
“They don’t want any publicity,” said a Fire Department spokesman. “They just want a nice, quiet gathering.”
The firefighters were arranging for a funeral service at a nearby church. They donated money to make sure the old man affectionately known as “The Chief” got a decent funeral.
“He was a very nice man,” said Pete Mabanta, an 18-year FDNY veteran. “We work in a high-crime area, and he was a self-appointed security guard. He’d try to keep anyone from stealing anything.”
As for why they’d dig into their own pockets, the answer is simple, Mabanta said: “We grew fond of him over the years.”
Folks figured the man was in his 80s when he died a couple weeks ago in a vacant lot in the neighborhood.