Into the Smokeis a work of photojournalism and traces Tom Barry's career as a firefighter--spanning parts of four decades in FDNY--along with the forty-year effort of noted freelance photographer Michael Dick. The era covered in this book is best known in the fire service on the east coast of the United States as the War Years, the urban decay and social unrest that started in the 1960s and persisted, continually fed by arson for profit, into the 1990s. Firefighting is a truckie blindly crawling down a smoke-filled hallway, searching for victims, hoping to find them before the fire does. It is an engine operator, calling on the last ounce of strength and pushing deeper into the apartment to extinguish the fire in the rear bedroom and beat the "Red Devil" one more time. Fellowship of the firefighter Fantasies from childhood intertwine with the terror of impending death, the pain of disfigurement, the joys of success, and the comradeship and respect of their peers. Many of the fires depicted in this book predate OSHA personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements. This period was a fertile stage for innovation and development of firefighting techniques and equipment.

In 1919, when Wesley Williams became a New York City firefighter, he stepped into a world that was 100% white and predominantly Irish. As far as this city knew, black men in the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) tended horses. Nearly a century later, many things in the FDNY had changed—but not the scarcity of blacks. New York had about 300 black firefighters—roughly 3 percent of the 11,000 New York firefighters in a city of two million African Americans. That made the FDNY a true aberration compared to all the other uniformed departments, like the NYPD. Decades earlier, women and blacks had sued over its hiring practices and won. But the FDNY never took permanent steps to eradicate the inequities, which led to a courtroom show-down between New York City's billionaire Mayor, Mike Bloomberg, and a determined group of black activist firefighters. It was not until 2014 that the city settled the $98 million lawsuit. At the center of this book are stories of courage—about firefighters risking their lives in the line of duty but also risking their livelihood by battling an unjust system. Among them: FDNY Captain Paul Washington, a second generation black firefighter, who spent his multi-decade career fighting to get minorities on the job. He faced an insular culture made up of relatives who never saw their own inclusion as favoritism. Based on author Ginger Adams Otis' years of on the ground reporting, Firefight is an exciting blend of the high-octane energy of firefighting and critical Civil Rights history.

"In Common Valor, Frank Viscuso describes the firefighting world as only a firefighter can. Viscuso captures the human emotion and drama from firefighters who have endured a wide range of firefighting and rescue scenarios. He goes way beyond the stories that the public may hear about. With Common Valor, you live it. From these dramatic descriptions, you feel yourself right there, up close with the rescuers. From seeing fellow firefighters die to being caught in a flashover and living to tell about it, Common Valor captures the true spirit and camaraderie of firefighters." —Harvey Eisner If you are a firefighter, or hope to be one someday, you need to read Common Valor. This book captures the true spirit of firefighting and all the emotions that accompany what has been called both the greatest and most stressful job on earth.

On September 11, the world was made heartbreakingly aware of the risks taken by the New York City Fire Department. But the New York Daily News has been documenting their bravery since 1919. Now, culled from their archive of over 6 million images, this book represents more than eighty years of the FDNY in action: fighting fires, at rest in the station house, training, mourning, protesting and proudly posing for history. A tribute to the dedication, heroism and humanity of the thousands serving in NY, this book is illustrated with 120 colour and b/w photos.

Fire Department City of New York honors the department's 137 years of dedicated service to the City of New York by chronicling its history of the department with a updated listing of all the firefighters that have been killed in the line of duty. This book features 272 pages of which 67 are full-color pages. It has been updated to include the photos of all 343 individuals that so bravely lost their lives on September 11, 2001.

Collection of fifteen stories of heroism.

This book describes the trials of probationary firefighter Richard A. Meo from his training at the New York City Fire Department Firefighting School at Randall's Island, through his assignments as a Firefighter, Lieutenant, and Captain. Over one hundred fires and emergencies are chronicled from 1980 to 2003. The major events include the 1981 West Side Pier Fire, the Grand Central Station Fire 1985, Gramercy Park Steam Explosion 1989, Bankers Trust Office Building Fire 1992, World Trade Center Bombing 1993, and September 11, 2001.

September 11, 2001, is starting off like any other day. By 5:15 a.m., Cameron Burke, a Vietnam vet and member of the military intelligence special operations unit, is running along the Potomac. As he completes his run and mentally plans his day, Cameron has no idea that in mere hours, everything will changenot only for him, but for everyone in the world. After realizing he has already cheated death by not arriving at the Pentagon early that morning, Cameron receives orders from the President to find who committed the catastrophic terrorist acts against the United States. Meanwhile, as New York Times reporter Josselyn Jeffrey slowly makes her way through the horror as the South Tower falls, she only has one regret in lifelosing Cameron, the love of her life. As Cameron and Josselyn muddle their way through the aftermath, they each recall their moments shared together and the years they lived apart. Now only time will tell if destiny and a life-changing tragedy have the power to bring the two lovers together once again. Arise, O Phoenix is a story of loves indomitable power and the triumph of the human spirit that both rise from the ashes of 9/11 to remind us all of the only things that truly matter in life.

New York Times Bestseller From the first FDNY chief to respond to the 9/11 attacks, an intimate memoir and a tribute to those who died that others might live When Chief Joe Pfeifer led his firefighters to investigate an odor of gas in downtown Manhattan on the morning of 9/11, he had no idea that his life was about to change forever. A few moments later, he watched as the first plane crashed into the World Trade Center. Pfeifer, the closest FDNY chief to the scene, spearheaded rescue efforts on one of the darkest days in American history. Ordinary Heroes is the unforgettable and intimate account of what Chief Pfeifer witnessed at Ground Zero, on that day and the days that followed. Through his eyes, we see the horror of the attack and the courage of the firefighters who ran into the burning towers to save others. We see him send his own brother up the stairs of the North Tower, never to return. And we walk with him and his fellow firefighters through weeks of rescue efforts and months of numbing grief, as they wrestle with the real meaning of heroism and leadership. This gripping narrative gives way to resiliency and a determination that permanently reshapes Pfeifer, his fellow firefighters, NYC, and America. Ordinary Heroes takes us on a journey that turns traumatic memories into hope, so we can make good on our promise to never forget 9/11.

New York City:In Small Spaces is a compilation of poems about life, love, nature, history, disillusionment, and mortality. The prose depicts life experiences in the tarnished yet hallowed city.