Bunting ceremony honors FDNY firefighter William P. Moon II
BROWNSVILLE, Brooklyn (WABC) -- Firefighters placed black and purple bunting outside Rescue Company 2 in Brownsville Sunday morning to honor a member of the squad who died in a training accident.
Elite FDNY firefighter William "Billy" Moon II fell some 20 feet from an elevated surface here last week. He was 47 years old.
His widow, Kristina, was forced to tell the couple's children Bri and Collin that their dad would not survive.
"If you're having the worst day of your life, you would want Billy Moon riding on that fire truck over there," Rescue 2 Captain William Flaherty told Eyewitness News.
Flaherty says even though Moon was a veteran of the FDNY, he was a recent addition to this highly skilled team.
"They don't get assigned here. They come over here on a tryout," said Flaherty. "And Billy, he had some really difficult fires when he got here, some real tough rescues. And he performed amazing."
On Saturday night, members of the FDNY lined up outside NYU Langone Hospital as Moon's remains were transferred.
In Islip, where Moon was raising his family, neighbors were paying their respects this weekend.
"It's like a bad dream. It's like... things like this aren't supposed to happen," said Bobby Mason. "He was such a great guy, such a family guy... with his kids, out there putting the lights up."
Moon's family says his organs will be donated, meaning that even in death, he will continue saving lives.
"Billy was a selfless warrior who gave the gift of life in this life," said Flaherty, "and the Hereafter... the Ultimate Santa Claus, giving life to people at Christmas."
Aside from his work with the FDNY, Moon was also a former chief in Islip. The heaviness has cast a shadow over the holiday with bunting lining his street. Flags are also flying at half-staff.
Moon's death is that much harder to take in Islip, because it is the second time this year one of their own was fatally injured in the line of duty for the FDNY.
Back in February, Jesse Gerhard collapsed and died at his firehouse after battling a fire in Queens. Gerhard was also a volunteer from Islip.
His wife released a statement read by FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh on Friday.
"His love and passion for the job extended far from the firehouse walls. He instilled that same passion in our children and always talked about how important it was to help others," she said.
Planning for his funeral is still underway.
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