Worcester Fire Department

The Worcester Fire Department provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the city of Worcester, Massachusetts. The department serves an area of with a population of 183,000 residents.

WWW Official Site

Notable incidents

Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse fire

On December 3, 1999, six firefighters were killed at the Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse fire. The fire occurred at 6:13 p.m. in an abandoned cold storage warehouse at Box 1438, 266 Franklin Street. Six Worcester firefighters died while looking for two homeless victims thought to be trapped in the blaze. The fire went to five alarms and took six days to bring under control. Those killed were:

Lieutenant Thomas Spencer, 42, Ladder 2
Firefighter Paul Brotherton, 41, Rescue 1
Firefighter Jeremiah Lucey, 38, Rescue 1
Firefighter Timothy Jackson, 51, Ladder 2
Firefighter James Lyons, 34, Engine 3
Firefighter Joseph McGuirk, 38, Engine 3

Services for the firefighters were held in the DCU Center. The funeral procession was broadcast on several national news networks and was attended by President Bill Clinton, Vice President Al Gore, Senator Ted Kennedy and Senator John Kerry. Also in the procession were firefighters from around the United States, Canada, and from Dublin, Ireland.
Because his cousin, FF. Lucey, and high school friend, Lt. Spencer were killed in the fire, actor/comedian Denis Leary, a Worcester native, started the Leary Firefighters Foundation in 2000 to give aid and support to many fire departments, particularly those suffering from budget shortfalls by providing them with new equipment.