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Veteran NY firefighter dies from 9/11-related cancer

Robert “Bert” Mentrasti responded to the World Trade Center attacks as part of a technical rescue team

By FireRescue1 Staff

FAIRVIEW, N.Y. — A veteran firefighter died Friday from 9/11-related cancer complications.

LoHud.com reported that Fairview firefighter Robert “Bert” Mentrasti responded to the World Trade Center attacks as part of the Greenburgh technical rescue team. Twelve years after the attacks, he was diagnosed with cancer. He had an allergic reaction to a treatment, went into a coma and later died.

“Bert was one of those guys who would’ve driven a 1,000 miles for you,” Chief Howard Reiss said. “He wasn’t just a great firefighter, he was a great person and we’re definitely going to miss him.”

Mentrasti started as a volunteer firefighter before becoming a career firefighter in 1985; he started working in Fairview in 1991, where he spent 25 years before retiring last December.

He was an avid supporter of the Muscular Dystrophy Association, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years.

A wake will be held Monday and Tuesday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Ballard Funeral Home; a funeral mass will be held Wednesday at 9:45 a.m. at the Sacred Heart Church.

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