[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 158 (Wednesday, October 28, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H11999-H12001]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   NATIONAL FIREFIGHTERS MEMORIAL DAY

  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
resolution (H. Res. 729) expressing support for designation of a 
``National Firefighters Memorial Day'' to honor and celebrate the 
firefighters of the United States.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The text of the resolution is as follows:

                              H. Res. 729

       Whereas firefighters are often the first to respond to an 
     emergency, whether the emergency is a fire, transportation 
     accident, natural disaster, act of terrorism, medical 
     emergency, or spill of hazardous materials;
       Whereas firefighters tirelessly promote fire prevention and 
     safety to protect our Nation;
       Whereas people often do not recognize the important and 
     dangerous work of firefighters;
       Whereas the United States has more than 1,000,000 
     firefighters, 71 percent of whom are volunteer firefighters 
     and approximately 15,000 of whom are female;
       Whereas there are 1,600,000 fires, on average, in the 
     United States each year;
       Whereas approximately 30,000 fire departments operate 
     within the United States;
       Whereas a fire department responds to a fire in the United 
     States every 20 seconds;
       Whereas fire departments respond to nearly 2,000,000 calls 
     in the United States each year without hesitation;
       Whereas approximately 100 firefighters die in the United 
     States each year in the line of duty;
       Whereas 343 New York City Fire Department firefighters died 
     in the line of duty at the World Trade Center on September 
     11, 2001;
       Whereas an estimated 32,500 structure fires were 
     intentionally set in the United States in 2007, resulting in 
     295 civilian deaths;
       Whereas 103 on-duty firefighter fatalities occurred in 
     2008-2009 on the fire ground, 11 at other emergency calls, 39 
     while responding to or returning from alarms, 7 during 
     training activities, and 17 during other on-duty activities;
       Whereas approximately 3,600 people die in the United States 
     each year as a result of fires, and over 19,000 are injured;
       Whereas October 9 is the anniversary of the Great Chicago 
     Fire of 1871, in which more than 300 people lost their lives;
       Whereas President Harding declared the week of October 9 to 
     be ``Fire Prevention Week'' in 1922;
       Whereas the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service 
     takes place each year at the National Fire Academy in 
     Emmitsburg, Maryland, on the Sunday before Fire Prevention 
     Week;
       Whereas the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation 
     sponsors the annual memorial service to pay tribute to 
     firefighters who died in the line of duty during the previous 
     year;
       Whereas given its significance, the Sunday before Fire 
     Prevention Week would be an ideal day to commemorate Federal, 
     State, and local firefighters killed or disabled in the line 
     of duty;
       Whereas the Congress created the National Fallen 
     Firefighters Foundation to honor America's fallen 
     firefighters and their families; and
       Whereas in 2001, President George W. Bush signed Public Law 
     107-051 requiring that the flag of the United States at all 
     public buildings be flown at half staff in honor of the 
     National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service in Emittsburg, 
     Maryland: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
       (1) urges the President to designate a day as ``National 
     Firefighters Memorial Day'' to commemorate Federal, State, 
     and local firefighters killed or disabled in the line of 
     duty; and
       (2) calls upon the people of the United States to observe 
     such a day with appropriate ceremonies and respect.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. Lynch) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Massachusetts.


                             General Leave

  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
and add any extraneous materials.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Massachusetts?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Committee on Oversight and Government 
Reform, I am proud to present House Resolution 729 for consideration. 
This resolution seeks to honor our brave firefighters across the United 
States, as well as commemorate those firefighters who have been 
disabled or

[[Page H12000]]

killed in the line of duty by expressing the support of the House of 
Representatives for the designation of a National Firefighters Memorial 
Day.
  The measure before us was introduced on September 10 by my colleague, 
Representative Ted Poe of Texas, and enjoys the support of nearly 60 
Members of Congress.
  Mr. Speaker, according to the National Fire Protection Association, 
there are over 1.1 million firefighters serving throughout more than 
30,000 fire departments across the Nation, including over 300,000 
career firefighters, and over 800,000 volunteer firefighters. As we 
have witnessed time and again, whether in the midst of the terrorist 
attacks on September 11, in the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and 
Rita, or in the face of the daily emergencies faced by our local 
communities, these brave men and women are always on the front lines in 
the event of a local, State, or national crisis, and are willing to 
serve and safeguard their fellow citizens, at great risk to their own 
personal safety.
  According to the United States Fire Administration, which annually 
collects data on firefighter fatalities across the country, last year 
witnessed 118 on-duty firefighter fatalities, including the deaths of 
66 volunteer firefighters and 34 career firefighters. In addition, the 
United States Fire Administration has provisionally reported that to 
date this year, there have been 77 firefighter fatalities, including 
deaths of two heroic firefighters from my own home State of 
Massachusetts, firefighter Paul J. Roberts of the Beverly fire 
department, and fire fighter Kevin M. Kelly of my own Boston fire 
department.
  Notably, the bravery and self-sacrifice demonstrated by our local, 
State, and Federal firefighters are not limited to their public service 
on behalf of their fellow citizens, communities, and country here at 
home. Many of these exceptional public servants are currently deployed 
overseas in Iraq, Kuwait, Afghanistan, and other nations in the Middle 
East, as well as serving on aircraft carriers in support of our 
military and reconstruction missions abroad, including Operation Iraqi 
Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.
  As reported just last week by the International Association of 
Firefighters, 16 IAFF members are currently serving together at Kirkuk 
Regional Air Base in Iraq as members of the 22nd Air Force Reserve 
Command. Collectively, these soldiers represent 11 IAFF affiliates and 
constitute one of the largest numbers of IAFF members to serve together 
in Iraq.
  Mr. Speaker, our brave local, State, and Federal firefighters stand 
as a shining example of the public service and principle of shared 
sacrifice that has come to define our Nation. It is my hope that we can 
honor their dedication to their fellow citizens, as well as commemorate 
the lives of our fallen firefighters, through the passage of House 
Resolution 729. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, we have some important legislation 
before us today. House Resolution 729 expresses support for designation 
of a National Firefighters Memorial Day, and I am honored to be the 
sponsor of this legislation. Also, I want to thank Chairman Towns for 
bringing this legislation to the floor, and the other 59 cosponsors of 
this legislation.
  The legislation is to honor the dedication and sacrifices of 
firefighters and the dedication they make every day to keep families 
and our communities safe. In 2007, there were over 1.1 million 
firefighters in the United States. Of these, about a third are 
professional firefighters in the sense that they are career 
firefighters. But the other 825,000 are all volunteer firefighters. 
What that means, Mr. Speaker, is they volunteer their services to 
protect the communities they live in and the people who live around 
those communities, but they have other jobs to support their families.
  One of the volunteer fire departments in Harris County, Texas, is the 
Atascocita fire department. They still drive around with those reds 
trucks with the big American flag on the back, something that started 
after 9/11.
  There are 30,000 fire departments that operate in the United States. 
It is time for the Nation to recognize and honor the bravery and create 
a National Firefighters Memorial Day to honor Federal, State, and local 
firefighters who have been killed or disabled in the line of duty. 
These brave men and women deserve our respect and our gratitude. The 
time has come for us to create a National Firefighters Memorial Day.
  Congress, several years ago, created a National Law Enforcement 
Memorial Day that we honor and recognize even here on this Capitol 
grounds every May 15, and it is time that we also recognize and elevate 
the sacrifices that firefighters have made to a national memorial day 
as well.
  This past Easter Sunday in Houston, Texas, we had two Houston 
firefighters killed in a house fire saving two people. They were 
Captain James Harlow who had been a veteran of the fire department for 
many years, and a rookie, Damian Hobbs. This happened to be his very 
first fire, and he was killed in that tragic incident. The people in 
that house were rescued, but after the fire was over with and before 
the two firefighters were brought from that house, other firefighters 
from the Houston area came to the home and assembled in two lines as 
their bodies were brought from the ashes of that fire.
  Firefighters are a unique and rare breed. They not only protect and 
serve our communities, but they are very loyal to each other. The last 
firefighters killed in the Houston area were also important 
firefighters, and their names are:
  Grady Burke was killed in a fire started by a man that was trying to 
light a crack pipe.
  Kevin Kulow was killed in the El Festival ballroom in a fire set by a 
man who was trying to get back at his estranged wife. The building 
burned down, and Officer Kulow was killed.
  Captain Jay Jahnke was killed in a high-rise fire in the Galleria 
area of Houston, Texas.
  Also, two firefighters were killed while they were putting out a fire 
at a McDonald's restaurant in southwest Houston. Their names were Lewis 
Mayo and Kim Smith.
  All communities are affected by fires, and all communities are 
affected by the fact that firefighters, men and women that wear that 
uniform, sometimes are disabled, injured, or killed protecting the rest 
of us.
  Mr. Speaker, there is a fire in the United States every 20 seconds. 
There are 1.6 million fires in the United States every year. Some of 
those are caused by accident, but many of those are caused by arson. 
Every year there is an average of 100 firefighters somewhere in the 50 
States and our territories that are killed in the line of duty, and 
some of those are volunteers and some of those are career firefighters. 
In 2008, there were 118 firefighters killed in the line of duty.
  Of course we all remember September 11, 2001, which raised the 
awareness of the first responders in our country and what they do for 
the rest of us. When on September 11, 2001, as many people remember 
when the World Trade Center was attacked, when the Pentagon was 
attacked, and when there was a plane that crashed trying to protect the 
rest of us from an attack in Pennsylvania, someone had to respond to 
those tragedies, and they were our first responders.
  Many of the firefighters that responded at the World Trade Center 
went into those buildings and never came out. Later on September 11, 
2001, while many people like myself were watching the video of what was 
taking place specifically in New York City, observed that when those 
planes crashed into the World Trade Center, the north and south tower, 
a lot of folks, thousands of people, good people, but when those planes 
hit the World Trade Center, Mr. Speaker, those people were running as 
hard as they could to get away from that terror in the sky. There were 
other people that when those planes hit the World Trade Center, when 
they hit the Pentagon over here, they were running as hard as they 
could to get to that terror that occurred at the World Trade Center and 
at the Pentagon.

                              {time}  1215

  Who were those people? Well, they were the Port Authority in New 
York, they were New York City police officers, and they were 
firefighters and emergency medical technicians.
  While it is important for us to always remember the 3,000 people that 
were

[[Page H12001]]

killed on September 11, 2001, it's equally important for us to remember 
the hundreds that got to live because those first responders ran into 
those burning buildings and saved other people. Of those responders, 
there were 37 Port Authority officers killed, there were 23 New York 
City police officers, and there were 343 firefighters, including 41 of 
those who were emergency medical technicians. They gave their lives so 
that others could live.
  That is what they do; that is what firefighters do. When they hear 
the alarm, they know they are going to danger, but because they are a 
special breed, a rare breed, they do that. They do that because their 
community and the people are important. And they rush into that fire, 
whether it's a home that's burning in Houston, Texas, or whether it's 
an attack on America in New York City. So we honor them by passing this 
resolution to give them a special memorial day.
  Every year in October, we recognize the sacrifice and the commitment 
that these firefighters do for this country and for the people of this 
Nation.
  And that's just the way it is.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LYNCH. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to thank the gentleman for 
offering this resolution. I want to thank him for his kind words and 
eloquent words on behalf of our firefighters. I offer my own 
condolences to the families of Houston--the Harlow, Burke, Kulow, 
Jahnke, Mayo and Smith families--as well as in my own State, the 
Roberts family and Beverly and Kevin Kelley's family out of Local 718 
in Boston because their loss has been so recent and heartfelt.
  I want to also mention Bill Pascrell of New Jersey, who on our side 
is a true champion of the cause of firefighters for all the reasons 
that the gentleman has articulated.
  I thank the gentleman. And I ask all our colleagues on both sides of 
the aisle to support this resolution honoring American firefighters by 
passing House Resolution 729.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Lynch) that the House suspend the 
rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 729.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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