Tarrytown in Mourning after Losing Two Good Men

Flags are at half staff around Tarrytown today and local fire stations are draped with the purple and black banners of mourning.

Many are still coming to terms with the loss of two upstanding members of the community, volunteer firefighters John Kelly and Anthony Ruggiero, who was also a member of the village Department of Public Works.

Both men died after succumbing to fumes and falling down an approximately 15-foot sewer manhole behind Consolidated Engine Fire House in Tarrytown on Monday evening.

At the Main Street Firehouse today, engines from Ossining, Valhalla and Chappaqua were all stationed to answer calls in the village while the department copes with the loss.

"Mutual aid companies will be here all day long, more will be coming in to relieve them," Tarrytown Fire Department Second Assistant Chief John McGee said. "We might be back in service tonight, I just don't know."

Investigations into the cause of the two men's deaths are ongoing. Tarrytown police, which has a detective working on the case, is referring all press inquiries to Village Hall. A follow up press conference may be scheduled later today to address the matter, according to the village. Tarrytown trustees will be holding a board meeting tonight and will likely address the matter then, Mayor Drew Fixell said Monday night.

A representative at the Westchester County Medical Examiner's Office said that an autopsy was currently being conducted on both men. A report and further information will not be available for some time, a representative said at 4 p.m., because coroners "have to get other test results back until we can determine a cause of death."

The incident that led to the men's deaths started yesterday with the report of a sewage backup on Sheldon Avenue.

Ruggiero, the village's Road Maintenance Foreman with the DPW, went into the manhole behind Consolidated Engine Company around 6:30 p.m. searching for the cause of the backup.  As he descended into the manhole, he lost consciousness and fell backwards. Kelly, who was in the area, had attempted to rescue Ruggiero. He too was overcome and lost consciousness.

Yellow caution tape still surrounds the site where emergency crews battled to rescue and save the men last night. Initial results from the county's hazardous materials crews found that the manhole hole behind Consolidated Engine Company lacked oxygen at the time. It currently poses no danger to nearby residents.

Kelly, a long-time member of the Tarrytown Fire Department, started his career with Washington Engine Company, he then moved to Consolidated Engine Company and then spent 10 years with Riverside Hose Company before moving to Conqueror Hook & Ladder Company. He worked Highway Maintenance for the New York State DOT in Eastview.

Many remembered Kelly for his overflowing, caring nature. He was a man that would drive around town with a Christmas tree in the the back of his truck during the holiday season.

"John would give you the shirt off his back," McGee said. "Anything you ask, he would do for you; if you were moving he would help, and bring the truck."

Ruggiero was also a volunteer firefighter for more than 20 years and had spent his time with Hope Hose Company Engine 79. Ruggiero had worked for the Village of Tarrytown for more than 29 years and graduated from Sleepy Hollow High School in 1980. 

"We had a lot of laughs," McGee said, recalling Ruggiero's sense of humor and love for big cigars.

Tarrytown firefighters will have a session with a crisis team later today to discuss the incident and help members cope with the tragedy.

"Everyone is still kind of shocked," McGee said.

A department service is being planned for both Kelly and Ruggiero. Both men will have their funeral services organized through Coffey Funeral Home in Tarrytown.

Visitation for Kelly will be at Coffey Funeral Home on Friday, September 10, from 3-9 p.m. His Funeral Mass will be Saturday, September 11, at 10:00 at St. Teresa of Avila Church with interment to follow in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery.

Visitation for Ruggiero will be held on Wednesday from 7-9 p.m. and Thursday from 2-4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. at Coffey Funeral Home. His Funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. on Friday at Transfiguration Church with interment to follow at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery.