09/11/2026
Twenty five years ago, four Getzville firefighters deployed to Ground Zero in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Assistant Chief Irving Isenberg, Captain Ryan Labertew, Captain Richard Stuewe, and Lieutenant Robert Zacher assisted in rescuing three individuals from the rubble near Albany and West Streets, using a map ripped out of a phone book to help guide them to a nearby hospital.
On this 25th anniversary of the attacks, Getzville firefighters attended two ceremonies: A ceremony of remembrance at the Amherst Memorial Hill Grove, and the National Commemoration Ceremony in New York City, with Robert Zacher and Ryan Labertew in attendance.
18 years after the attacks, past Chief Irving Isenberg, who had been diagnosed with multiple cancers linked to time spent at Ground Zero, died on November 1, 2019. He was 55.
Three months before he passed, past Chief Isenberg was interviewed by a reporter about his time at Ground Zero. “I was overwhelmed, it was very emotional,” he said. “Just to be able to help our fellow brothers and sisters down at FDNY… it was a great honor.”
