Two City first responders recently died. Counted among the Bravest and Finest of the five boroughs, these selfless public servants answered the call every day. And so The Forum, proudly part of a grieving but grateful Gotham, wishes to use this space this week to pay tribute to Firefighter Steven Pollard and Police Officer Brian Kessler, and thank them and their families for sharing two extraordinary gifts with the world.
Firefighter Steven Pollard died on Sunday, Jan. 6, from critical injuries sustained while operating at a motor vehicle accident on the Mill Basin Bridge in Brooklyn. He was 30 years old.
Pollard, a member of Ladder Co. 170 in Canarsie for his entire 1.5-year career, tried to get to the eastbound side of the Belt Parkway span from the westbound side in order to tend to passengers who were seriously hurt in the crash.
“Firefighter Pollard slipped through the gap in the roadway and fell to the ground approximately 52 feet,” said Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro, according to the New York Daily News.
Pollard was rushed to Kings County Hospital. He succumbed to his extensive injuries shortly after arrival.
In remarks at Pollard’s funeral on Friday, Jan. 11, at Good Shepherd Church in Brooklyn, Mayor Bill de Blasio summoned the profound words of the priest and poet, John Donne.
“No man is an island entire of itself; Every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.”
“We know that Steven didn’t see himself as an island,” de Blasio said.“We know he was someone so proud to be a member of his family. We know he was so proud to be a member of the FDNY. We know he was a proud New Yorker. We know he was a proud and devoted Rangers fan in good times and bad. We know he saw himself as a part of something greater and we know he believed in service to others. On Sunday, what Steven Pollard saw was a fellow New Yorker, a fellow human being in a crumpled SUV out on the Belt Parkway. He did not hesitate. He saw someone in danger. He saw that someone needed help. He rushed forward and at that instant he gave his life.”
Firefighter Steven Pollard is survived by his mother, Janet; father, retired Firefighter Raymond Pollard who served for 32 years in the FDNY; and his brother, Firefighter Raymond Pollard, an 11-year veteran of Ladder Company 114 in Brooklyn.
Police Officer Brian Kessler died on Wednesday, Jan. 16, following a head-on collision with a City Parks Department garbage truck in the Bronx. He was 28.
Kessler, a rookie who just graduated from the Police Academy in October, was driving northbound on Shore Road on his way home to New Rochelle around 8:20 a.m. after working overnight at 1 Police Plaza when he suddenly swerved into the southbound lane and the truck’s path. He was rushed to Jacobi Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.
“His mother said that the thought of never seeing him again is just unbearable,” a family friend told the New York Post. “And I agree with her.”
Rest in Peace, Officer Kessler and Firefighter Pollard. Thank you for stepping up and setting such an incredible example in becoming the Finest and Bravest the greatest city in the universe has to offer.
Thank you for your service.
