By Jenn Adelson
Minutes after Ford's arrival, an explosion rocked the two-story brick hardware store. The blast sent tons of bricks and debris from a collapsed wall and ceiling crashing down onto the street, burying Ford and John Downing of Port Jefferson outside the building and trapping Brian Fahey of East Rockaway in the basement.
Colleagues from Rescue Company 4 could not dig the three men out in time. Two other firefighters, Brendan Manning and Joseph Vosilla, were critically injured in Sunday's blast. While Manning's condition was upgraded to stable on Tuesday, Vosilla was still listed in critical condition.
A 13-year-old boy told investigators Tuesday that he accidentally knocked over a gasoline canister while scouring behind the hardware store for spray paint on Sunday, sending fuel sliding toward a basement hot-water heater. Investigators, who are questioning the Queens boy and his 15-year-old friend, suspect that as the gasoline neared the heater, the pilot light ignited the vapors and caused the explosion.
Fire officials now say the tragic Father's Day deaths could have been prevented if the 128-year-old building had sprinklers.
"If there's a sprinkler in that basement, these firefighters would be alive," New York Fire Commissioner Thomas Von Essen said Monday.
Ford, 50, lived on Virginia Avenue with his wife, Denise. The couple had a daughter Janna, 24, and two sons, Harry, 12, and Gerard, 10. Ford is also survived by his sister, Mary Ford of Bayside; brothers, Rich Ford of Staten Island, Tom Ford of Douglaston and John Ford of Westbury; and father, Harry Ford Sr. of Douglaston.
A 27-year veteran of the Fire Department of New York, Ford served with the Rescue Company 4 in Queens, an elite group that specializes in rescuing trapped victims. He also worked at Ladder companies 11 and 108. Ford, who grew up in Little Neck and attended Bayside High School, earned nine bravery citations during his career.
"If there ever was someone you wanted to go into a fire with, it was Harry," said Lang, a retired firefighter.
Bruce Lindahl, who worked with Ford at Ladder Company 108, said his Irish pal, like all firefighters, knew the job, knew the risks, but didn't talk about them. Ford did, however, post in his locker a picture of Peter McLaughlin, the last member of Rescue 4 to die in the line of duty.
"We go to work every day and don't think it's going to happen to us. It's in the back of our minds - but we go and do what we're supposed to do," Lindahl said.
As a second job, Ford worked for his father, a high-ranking official with electrical workers' union Local 82. Ford helped build sets for movies including the "Exorcist," "Ghostbusters," and most recently, for HBO shows such as "Sex and the City" and "Oz."
"When they were shooting crowd scenes, he even got to serve as an extra in 'Ghostbusters'," said sister-in-law Nora Brust of Poughkeepsie.
Friends, fellow firefighters and extended family members streamed in and out of Ford's small gray house this week, guarding a wooden porch that was known for neighborhood barbecues.
"Ford and his wife opened their homes to neighbors and encouraged community gatherings, especially on Memorial Day and the Fourth of July," said neighbor Carmela Nigro.
"Everybody on the block knew where to get a cold beer," Lang said. "He was a great friend and a good neighbor. There's going to be a big hole in everybody's heart."
Friends also admired Ford's physical fitness. Although he celebrated his 50th birthday two weeks ago, Ford just took up snowboarding last year and was a longtime member of the fire department football team. Golf was his favorite sport and Lang joked that Ford received "about 400 golf shirts at his birthday party."
According to Brust, Ford also shared his love for physical activity with his sons. In Father's Day cards that his sons never got to give to him, they thanked Ford for taking them to the batting cage, playing miniature golf and going snowboarding.
Brust praised Ford as "an all-around generous person. He was my sister's best friend and a dedicated father. He was willing to give anybody the shirt off his back and never ever expect anything in return."
Chris Di Girgio, owner of Roma and Son, a deli around the corner from Ford's house, agreed. "If we had boxes outside, he'd help bring them in without us even asking."
Di Girgio, who knew Ford for 15 years, said, "The man was always a gentleman."
The funeral was held Thursday at St. Ignatius Church. Firefighters held a memorial service on Tuesday.
