"We like to go to the places that are owned by a firefighter, the places where you know they're going to take care of you," said Firefighter Frank Blackstone of Ladder Company 173 in Howard Beach, Queens.
Though she seems like that nice lady next door, Dr. Kerry J. Kelly, 49, is chief medical officer of the New York City Fire Department, responsible for the health care of its 16,000 firefighters and officers, emergency medical technicians and paramedics.
The majority – 45.1% of health-care workers, 44.7% of firefighters and 60.4% of police – did not know how long it would take to get emergency stretchers to the scene.
"I had no idea who I had until we put him in the ambulance and he pulled me down over his face and he said, 'Take care of Chrissi and the kids,' " fellow firefighter Bricky Cole told hospital officials last year.
For the first time, the federal government is financing health care treatments for thousands of firefighters, police officers and other first responders sickened by their work at ground zero in the weeks after the attack on the twin towers.
"I make sure that I take care of my equipment," said Andrew Comer, a master firefighter.
The use of firefighter robots can reduce the risk to firefighters.
"She said to me, 'Take care of the children.' I said to the firefighters, 'Please, my wife is inside!' They tried, but it was too late".
'If the masks drop, put yours on first before you take care of children.' " In Oklahoma City, Dr. Markenson said, some firefighters still deny being at the bombing even though there are pictures of them taking care of children who died.
"He came here as a supervisor to take care of the employees and he never left his position," said Mr. Hassan, the firefighter.
