Feb. 15, 2023 The mother of one of the firefighters killed in a 2014 fire while waiting for water promised to help fix the issue.
By Matt Stone Source Boston Herald (TNS) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
A mother’s love to honor her hero son was on display at Boylston Street’s Engine 33 and Ladder 15 station.
That’s where Kathy Crosby-Bell fulfilled a promise.
“When Michael died, I was told his hose never got water in that awful fire,” Crosby-Bell said at the station Tuesday recalling one of the worst fires the Back Bay had seen. “At Michael’s gravesite, I swore to him I would fix it.”
She was on hand to help introduce the “Snap Tite Warrior Fire Hose” that was funded by a donation from the Last Call Foundation. Mayor Michelle Wu dedicated the hose to Firefighter Michael R. Kennedy, 33, and Fire Lt. Edward J. Walsh Jr., 43.
Both jakes died fighting a wind-whipped blaze at 298 Beacon St. on March 26, 2014. Boston Fire Department Commissioner Paul Burke said this new hose will be able to better withstand the heat from such a blaze — and save those who come to the rescue.