Worcester Remembers 6 Firefighters Killed 19 Years Ago In Cold Storage Fire
WORCESTER (CBS) – Worcester is remembering one of the darkest days in the city's history.
Nineteen years ago, on December 3, 1999 six firefighters were killed the Worcester Cold Storage fire.
Lt. Thomas Spencer, Lt. Timothy Jackson Sr., Lt. James Lyons III, and firefighters Jeremiah Lucey, Paul Brotherton and Joseph McGuirk died after becoming trapped in the fire. The fire was determined to have been started by two homeless people.
Lucey was actor and comedian Denis Leary's cousin. Spencer was a childhood friend of Leary's. Less than a year after the fire, the Worcester native created the Leary Firefighters Foundation which raises money and resources for fire departments across the country.
The city will mark the anniversary Monday with an brief, unofficial ceremony at 6 p.m. that includes a band, a prayer and wreath laying at the Franklin Street fire station, which was the site of the Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse Company. A moment of silence is also held at 6:13 p.m., the moment the first alarm was sounded.