Martin County loses firefighter, first to die in line of duty
Friday, February 27th, 2009 by Ana X. Ceron
Fred Pierno in July 2007, when he was working to put out a small brush fire near the Holly Creek subdivision, just off Jensen Beach Boulevard. Photo by Vada Mossavat.
STUART — Ferdinando “Fred” Pierno died this week surrounded by about two dozen of his brothers.
Fellow firefighters stood at Pierno’s bedside Wednesday as the Martin County Fire Rescue veteran lost a battle with Hepatitis C complications at his Port St. Lucie home.
“He died with his friends and his crew,” fire rescue spokesman Jon Belding said on Friday.
Afterward, Pierno’s friends remembered his commitment to Martin County Fire Rescue. Others said they considered the Vietnam War veteran a hero.
But Pierno, 55, also leaves behind a legacy of a different sort — he is the department’s first to die in the line of duty.
(more…)
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