Those of faith believe that fire Lt. Curt Meyran and firefighter John Bellew were watching from above as their beloved brothers performed acrobatics on new safety ropes yesterday. Firefighter Eugene Mahlstadt of Ladder 47 in The Bronx had just tested the new ropes, rappelling down a mock building at the Randalls Island Fire Academy with about 100 pounds of bunker gear and equipment. Headfirst out the window on the secured rope, he rolled over the line until he was upright, his legs spread for stability, and descended to safety just like a mountain climber.
Of course, Curt Meyran and John Bellew never got the chance to try out the new rope. They died – and four of their comrades were gravely injured – when they were forced to jump 50 feet to the ground from the windows of a blazing Bronx building on Jan. 23. And perhaps, despite the very understandable bitterness of their widows, it’s worth something to know they did not die in vain – if that is any consolation for a Fire Department screw-up.
“Maybe it’s a day late and a dollar short, but I picture Curt looking over all this and, well, if that’s a legacy of my husband and John Bellew, then perhaps eventually it’s a good thing,” said Meyran’s widow, Jeanette.
The rescue pack costs $350, said instructor Lt. Tim Kelly of Rescue 4. It’s a pretty good bargain when you figure the cost of human life.
“All of it has withstood every challenge in tests to see if there were any conditions where it didn’t work. It won the test every time,” Kelly said.
It’s better than what the Bravest had for the past five years in the way of ropes – which was nothing. It’s even better than the old ropes, Mahlstadt said, recalling a 1995 fire in Long Island City, Queens, that trapped and killed his partner, Pete McLaughlin.
“We had the old rope and harness. I was just about all the way out of the window, but couldn’t secure the rope inside because I would be jumping back into the fire,” Mahlstadt said. “Now with the new rope, you don’t have to go back into a room which may be on fire – you can actually secure the hook to the window sill and slide down the rope.”
Curt Meyran will be remembered in Malverne, L.I., on Sunday when Morris Avenue West is renamed Curtis Meyran Way, and I’m sure he and John Bellew will be remembered every time a firefighter straps on a safety rope.
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* Firefighters can carry up to 150 lbs. of gear when they go into burning buildings.
1. Bunker jacket and pants combined: 40 lbs.
2. Bunker boots: 15 lbs.
3. Helmet: 3 to 4 lbs.
4. Scott Air-Paks – self-contained breathing apparatus, includes the air tank and mask: 40 to 50 lbs.
5. Radios: 3 lbs.
6. Personal safety system and harness: 6 lbs. System includes rope, pulley, carabiners and a hook, carried in an 8-by-6-inch pouch attached to the harness.
7. Halligan tools – specially designed pry bars used to break down walls and doors: 20 lbs.
8. Axes – fiberglass handle and metal head: 25 lbs.
9. Pocket tools – screwdrivers, wrenches and tape
10. Fireproof gloves