On Friday afternoon Boston paid tribute to firefighters Lt. Ed Walsh and Michael Kennedy who tragically died battling a 9-alarm fire in the Back Bay on Wednesday. At City Hall Plaza Mayor Marty Walsh, Fire Commissioner John Hasson and fellow city officials raised the Boston Fire Department flag and observed a moment of silence.
The plaza was chock full of people paying their respects, many of whom joined attending firefighters in saluting Lt. Walsh and firefighter Kennedy. Those at work in surrounding buildings could be seen on roof decks and in windows doing the same.
The type of heroics exemplified by Lt. Walsh and Michael Kennedy, and the sometimes lethal risks they take to protect us all, Mayor Walsh reminded us all, is what Boston’s firefighters, police and medical personnel do on a daily basis.
As bagpipers belted a truly humbling rendition of “Amazing Grace,” the flag was raised and the moment of silence in remembrance of those who sacrifice on behalf of all of us was observed.
All of @bostonfire accept this danger as their duty. As we remember our fallen heroes, so too we honor all first responders. #bostonfire
— Mayor Marty Walsh (@marty_walsh) March 28, 2014
If you’re looking to join in the relief efforts, here are a number of charitable foundations aimed at quelling the grief of the families of Lt. Walsh and Michael Kennedy, the 13 constituent firefighters injured in the blaze and firefighters both across the state and the country.
