Band
of Brothers - JOE CUNNINGHAM NY Post Online Photo Courtesy NY
Post HAPPIER TIMES:
Timothy Higgins (second from right), who died in the Twin Towers
attacks, stands with his firefighting family - brothers Joe
(left) and Michael, dad Ed (center) and brother Bob (right).
October 10, 2001 -- After firefighter Timothy Higgins went missing
while saving lives at the World Trade Center, his four brothers
- three firefighters and a cop - made a pact that they wouldn't
stop searching until he was recovered. "We told ourselves, ‘We're
going to keep digging until we find him or we die trying,' "
said his brother Bob, 41, a fire lieutenant. "We wanted to do
it for the family, just give Tim some dignity and bring him
home." The brothers knew Timothy might never be found, but they
remained positive. "We knew our chances were slim," said brother
Joe, 40, of Ladder Co. 111. "But we made a pact that some member
of the Higgins family would be involved in the recovery at all
times. "My father [retired firefighter Ed Higgins] always told
us to stick up for each other, and that's what we did." On Sept.
23, around 9:30 p.m., Joe and his brothers Bob and Michael,
46, who recently retired from Ladder Co. 108 in Williamsburg,
took a short break from the search. It was then that Timothy's
body was finally pulled from the debris of the north tower.
The men got a radio call to return to the scene at once. "When
we got there, I saw a body wrapped in an American flag," Bob
said. "I looked at Battalion Chief Tommy Richardson and said,
‘What do you got?' He said, ‘This is Tim.'" Tradition calls
for the company to carry their fallen comrades down the hill,
but Bob asked if he and his brothers could help. "As we were
taking him down, I thought how lucky we were, and how bad I
felt for those who would never feel this kind of closure," said
Joe. The 43-year-old lieutenant from Farmingville, L.I., was
laid to rest at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Lake Ronkonkoma
last Thursday. He had distinguished himself over a 23-year career,
showing valor in emergencies, teaching rookies the ropes and
recently reconfiguring the department's SCUBA rescue operations.
Higgins, whom his brothers describe as "the ultimate family
man," leaves behind a wife, Caren, 39, two daughters, Catie,
15, and Cody, 13, and son Christopher, 17. All three firefighter
brothers, and the youngest, Matt, 35, a police sergeant at the
112th Precinct in Queens who also aided in the recovery effort,
were at the site on the day of the attack. Bob was at his post
in Brooklyn when he saw the first tower fall from his office's
seventh-story window. He and some co-workers commandeered a
city bus and rushed to the site. "When we got there, I saw one
of the guys who knew my brother. He said he last saw Timmy on
the 20th floor, and told him they were evacuating," said Bob.
"Timmy said, ‘I know, I'll meet ya, I'll meet ya.' And he and
his men all headed straight up the stairs." Their dad, Ed, 72,
spent 32 years in the Fire Department before retiring in 1988
as a captain at Engine Co. 227 in the Brownsville section of
Brooklyn. Joe remembers how their father guided the boys as
they followed in his footsteps, and how the whole family took
pride in their jobs. "We felt a little special. It was like
‘Want something done? Call the Higgins brothers,' " Joe said.
(Firehouse Article)
Timothy Higgins (second from right), who died in the Twin Towers
attacks, stands with his firefighting family - brothers Joe
(left) and Michael, dad Ed (center) and brother Bob (right).
October 10, 2001 -- After firefighter Timothy Higgins went missing
while saving lives at the World Trade Center, his four brothers
- three firefighters and a cop - made a pact that they wouldn't
stop searching until he was recovered. "We told ourselves, ‘We're
going to keep digging until we find him or we die trying,' "
said his brother Bob, 41, a fire lieutenant. "We wanted to do
it for the family, just give Tim some dignity and bring him
home." The brothers knew Timothy might never be found, but they
remained positive. "We knew our chances were slim," said brother
Joe, 40, of Ladder Co. 111. "But we made a pact that some member
of the Higgins family would be involved in the recovery at all
times. "My father [retired firefighter Ed Higgins] always told
us to stick up for each other, and that's what we did." On Sept.
23, around 9:30 p.m., Joe and his brothers Bob and Michael,
46, who recently retired from Ladder Co. 108 in Williamsburg,
took a short break from the search. It was then that Timothy's
body was finally pulled from the debris of the north tower.
The men got a radio call to return to the scene at once. "When
we got there, I saw a body wrapped in an American flag," Bob
said. "I looked at Battalion Chief Tommy Richardson and said,
‘What do you got?' He said, ‘This is Tim.'" Tradition calls
for the company to carry their fallen comrades down the hill,
but Bob asked if he and his brothers could help. "As we were
taking him down, I thought how lucky we were, and how bad I
felt for those who would never feel this kind of closure," said
Joe. The 43-year-old lieutenant from Farmingville, L.I., was
laid to rest at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Lake Ronkonkoma
last Thursday. He had distinguished himself over a 23-year career,
showing valor in emergencies, teaching rookies the ropes and
recently reconfiguring the department's SCUBA rescue operations.
Higgins, whom his brothers describe as "the ultimate family
man," leaves behind a wife, Caren, 39, two daughters, Catie,
15, and Cody, 13, and son Christopher, 17. All three firefighter
brothers, and the youngest, Matt, 35, a police sergeant at the
112th Precinct in Queens who also aided in the recovery effort,
were at the site on the day of the attack. Bob was at his post
in Brooklyn when he saw the first tower fall from his office's
seventh-story window. He and some co-workers commandeered a
city bus and rushed to the site. "When we got there, I saw one
of the guys who knew my brother. He said he last saw Timmy on
the 20th floor, and told him they were evacuating," said Bob.
"Timmy said, ‘I know, I'll meet ya, I'll meet ya.' And he and
his men all headed straight up the stairs." Their dad, Ed, 72,
spent 32 years in the Fire Department before retiring in 1988
as a captain at Engine Co. 227 in the Brownsville section of
Brooklyn. Joe remembers how their father guided the boys as
they followed in his footsteps, and how the whole family took
pride in their jobs. "We felt a little special. It was like
‘Want something done? Call the Higgins brothers,' " Joe said.
(Firehouse Article)