Hauppauge Native Unveils 9/11 Memorial Van Honoring Fallen NYPD Detectives

HAUPPAUGE, NY — Nearly 25 years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Scott Munro says the losses have not stopped.

"I was there. I lost a lot of friends. I lost a lot of people I know," Munro said Friday. "I lose people every day that I know. Last week alone, a person that I worked with, we lost him."

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Now Munro, a Hauppauge native, veteran NYPD detective and president of the NYPD Detectives' Endowment Association, is working to ensure those losses — and the sacrifices behind them — are not forgotten.

Munro on Friday unveiled a custom 9/11 memorial van at the Hauppauge Fire Department honoring NYPD detectives who died in the Sept. 11 attacks and those who later died from illnesses connected to rescue and recovery work at the World Trade Center.

The vehicle prominently honors Detective Second Grade Joseph V. Vigiano of Emergency Service Unit Truck 2 and Detective Second Grade Claude "Dan" Richards of the NYPD Bomb Squad, the two NYPD detectives killed at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

It also carries the names of 79 NYPD detectives who later died from 9/11-related illnesses, according to the Detectives' Endowment Association.

The van features large portraits of Vigiano and Richards, along with the union's emblem, an American flag, the New York City skyline and two beams of light representing the Twin Towers. The words "We Will Never Forget" are emblazoned across the memorial.

"We were there, and we're still on this job," Munro said at Friday's unveiling. "And we are not going to forget. We are going to make sure we educate the new detectives that come in about what happened on 9/11. It's very important to us."

Munro said he and other survivors funded the project, which has been in the works since November. Creating the vehicle required months of work, including its custom design and mechanical repairs.

The project is deeply personal to Munro not only because of his NYPD service, but because of his roots in Hauppauge.

Munro said he joined the Hauppauge Fire Department when he was 16 years old and later served as a fire commissioner for 28 years. He said his grandfather started the Hauppauge Fire Department in 1934.

When Munro became president of the detectives' union, he said he ultimately stepped away from his role as commissioner because he could no longer devote the attention he wanted to both responsibilities, but his connection to the department never faded.

"I have a lot of passion for here," Munro said. "I have a lot of passion for my job, what I do — it's important. I grew up here. I met a lot of good people. I was a young kid, and I was guided by the adults that were here, and I thank them for what they did for me."

That history helped make Hauppauge a home for the memorial van while it was being completed and for its first public unveiling.

Munro said the vehicle required specialized mechanical work because of its unusual configuration, including a rear-mounted engine, and it traveled back and forth between those working on its wrap and mechanical components before the project was completed.

Munro said the van will be transported into New York City on Sept. 8, when it will carry a memorial wreath to Ground Zero. He said Vigiano's son will join them as the wreath is laid in honor of law enforcement officers who died as a result of the attacks.

The vehicle will then return to Hauppauge, where it will be displayed during the Hauppauge Fire Department's Sept. 11 memorial ceremony.

As the 25th anniversary of the attacks approaches, Munro said he hopes the van will help preserve the memory of those who died while also teaching younger detectives about a day that shaped the department.

"We've got to remember," Munro said.