Battalion Chief Frank T. Tuttlemondo Medal

Lieutenant Daniel J. Walsh Ladder Company 172

January 2, 2005, 0000 hours, Box 10-77-2978, 1360 Ocean Parkway, Brooklyn

Appointed to the FDNY on February 17, 1987. Previously assigned to Engines 250 and 248. Brother, Lieutenant Kerry Walsh, is assigned to Engine 28; uncle, Robert Yorks, is retired from Ladder 77; uncle, Robert Messinger, is retired from Ladder 84; and cousin, Vincent Yorks, is assigned to Engine 155. Member of the Emerald Society. Recipient of a Service Rating A and a Service Rating B. When detailed to FDNY Headquarters, was the Project Manager for the 2000 Medal Day Book and a Technical Editor for WNYF and The Bravest. Resides in Staten Island.

The first day of the New Year had been a relatively quiet one for Lieutenant Daniel Walsh and the members of Ladder 172. But as the new day began, a horror was growing that would challenge the fortitude of this seasoned Lieutenant and his company. They first received a phone alarm of smoke reported coming from a window at 1360 Ocean Parkway at midnight. Within minutes, they were pulling up in front of the 15-story fireproof multiple dwelling.

There was no sign of smoke in the front, so Lieutenant Walsh told his outside vent Firefighter, FF Chris Bruno, and LCC Frank Denver to perform an outside survey, while he entered the lobby with his forcible entry team of FFs Michael Hartley with the irons and John Diodato with the can. They were met by a resident reporting a smoke condition on the 10th floor. Taking the elevator to the eighth floor, they checked the layout and conditions on that floor and then on the ninth as they worked their way up the stairs.

On the 10th floor, Ladder 172’s inside team was met by a heavy smoke condition. Lieutenant Walsh transmitted a 10-77 and began the search for the fire apartment. Feeling their way through the acrid black smoke, Lieutenant Walsh and the inside team located apartment 10H, where smoke and heat were pushing out from the sides of the closed door. They were delayed by a whole array of locks that they had to force in order to enter. As the door began to bend to their force, smoke and high heat  pushed out toward them, making their task even more difficult.

The conditions were almost too unbearable to work in, but the Lieutenant noticed a chainlink latch on the door that meant someone was trapped in this inferno. With grit and determination, they continued to work until they forced the door open, only to be forced to the floor by the blaze that was engulfing the entire living room. The fire had been raised to blowtorch proportions by the wind blowing in through the broken living room window.

Lieutenant Walsh checked behind the door and then noticed a hallway to his right. Ordering FF Hartley to check the hallway, the Officer proceeded to the seat of the fire with FF Diodato. FF Diodato was able to push the fire back just enough for Lieutenant Walsh to find and slip into a doorway to his right, leading to the dining room. As he methodically searched for the victim that he knew had to be in there somewhere, he worked his way into the kitchen and then back into a hallway.

With precious minutes ticking away, the Lieutenant spotted another doorway. Opening it, he found 56-year-old Freida Schmetzler lying on the bathroom floor. The handicapped woman was unconscious under her walker and had been severely burned. Transmitting a 10-45 signal to indicate that he had located the victim, Lieutenant Walsh called for his forcible entry team to help him remove her to safety.

As the members of Engine 330 moved in with a line to extinguish the blaze, Lieutenant Walsh and the Firefighters were able to get Ms. Schmetzler to the floor below the fire and then into an elevator. As they began their descent, FF Hartley started CPR on the victim. Exiting the elevator, EMS personnel took over patient care.

EMS reported that Ms. Schmetzler was unconscious with no sign of a pulse. Her throat was so full of soot from the fire that she had to be intubated before they could restore a pulse and blood pressure. They transported her to Maimonides Medical Center and then she was transported to Jacobi Burn Center due to the severity of her burns.

Were it not for Lieutenant Walsh’s bravery and determination to locate the victim, she surely would have perished in the blaze. For the courage and perseverance he displayed in this rescue, the Fire Department is proud to present the Battalion Chief Frank T. Tuttlemondo Medal to Lieutenant Daniel J. Walsh.—JT

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