By Laura French
LAS VEGAS — A retired FDNY firefighter and 9/11 responder who now lives in Las Vegas has donated a memorial engine to honor fallen firefighters in that city.
Retired FDNY Firefighter Frank Pizarro, who served for 22 years before retiring due to 9/11-related illness, learned that the tradition of carrying the casket of a fallen firefighter on a retrofitted engine was not available in Las Vegas, and this set him on a mission to give back, according to FOX5 Las Vegas.
Pizarro paid money from his own pocket to have a rig shipping from New Jersey to Las Vegas, with help from the Old Tappan Fire Department, and is now hoping to gather additional donations to have the engine retrofitted to carry a casket for funeral processions. The engine will need to have its water tank removed, be re-plated and have a lift installed to raise and lower the caskets.
Pizarro has set up an online fundraiser to help with retrofitting expenses. When the project is complete, the engine will become a dedicated memorial rig for the Las Vegas Fire Department.