Kansas City Fire Chief Paul Berardi was so overcome by a wave of emotion Wednesday morning that he couldn’t make it through a promotion ceremony at Fire Department headquarters.
Berardi said his thoughts raced back to a year ago when firefighters Larry J. Leggio and John V. Mesh died fighting a blaze in a building at 2608 Independence Blvd. A wall collapsed on the structure’s east side, spewing bricks and other debris into the alley where the firefighters stood. Two other firefighters were injured.
“It was just about the responsibility an individual takes in the next step up the ladder and how much a responsibility that is,” Berardi said about becoming emotional. “It just kind of brings back the memories and makes us remember.” In the past year, the Fire Department has worked to implement a series of recommendations that included a policy on how firefighters should work around building collapse zones, new policies on emergency decision-making, training and a review of mayday communication policies.