Dennis Smith is the guy responsible for introducing so many of us to what was referred to then as "The Arson Capital of the World".
For me, he started what ended up being a lifetime of buffing the Busiest, and what I consider to be the Best Fire Dept in the World. For so many other guys like me, "we owe it all to Dennis Smith".
As a young volunteer firefighter in Connecticut, some of us guys would go down to that South Bronx area to watch for ourselves the kind of fire activity that to this day, no other place in the world has ever seen. We would all watch and learn from the best, and we all got "hooked". Shortly after, "johnd248", joined our volunteer fire dept membership and we began to hear stories about Brooklyn as well.
Several years later this web site comes out. For many of us it gives us the opportunity to tell many of our buffing stories as we remember it. Many of those stories began because of the book "Report from Engine 82" by Dennis Smith.
Dennis Smith is responsible for introducing many of us as all part of a solid friendship. As buffs of that very busy South Bronx area, we got to meet and become friends with the late Harvey Eisner ***, who later wrote so many great articles in Firehouse Magazine, all started by FDNY member Dennis Smith.
*** Note - CORRECTION Made to spelling of the late Harvey Eisner's last name. Not as originally posted ***
With the 16th Anniversary of "Americas Worst Day" coming up soon on September 11th, Dennis Smiths book; "Report From Ground Zero", told some of the stories as a firefighter being at that World Trade Center site. That site claimed the lives of 343 FDNY members, whose family and friends will Never Forget. And is STILL claiming the lives of FDNY and NYPD members who suffer from breathing and cancer aliments.
Over many years, I've gotten to meet so many other great guys who were buffs just like myself. A few even grew up in some of the same neighborhoods where we chased the fires. I've also gotten to meet and become good friends with many of the guys who fought the thousands of fires in that area, during some of those very busy days. That in turn has allowed me to meet more of the guys who fight fires there today.
I'm wishing Retired FDNY/Author Dennis Smith a full recovering and like so many others I'm sure, a couple of special prayers for the guy that so many of us owe so much to.
I'm sure many of the guys here have already seen this video. But if you haven't, this is the place where Dennis Smith and other guys like him fought a staggering number of fires every single day. In this video, you will get a chance to hear Dennis Smith talk from his home along with his wife.
As a young guy with a special interest in the fire department, Dennis Smith has had a HUGE Impact on my entire life.
Here is that video I mentioned. I'm sure many have seen it before. It's about an hour long.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygF3NJvy3bY
www.firefighterclosecalls.com
