Missing FDNY Retiree Spotted by Passing Crew

An FDNY firefighter spotted a former firefighter who had been missing on a Bronx street.

Peter Campanelli, 90, was reported missing 36 hours earlier when he went out to handle errands. Police put out an alert for the firefighter who retired in 1985.

It was about 1:30 a.m. Saturday when Ladder 58 was driving down Claremont Parkway when Joseph Pirzinger spotted Campenlli on a corner, the New York Daily News reports.

“My grandparents were good friends with Pete and his wife,” Pirzinger told the newspaper. “When I saw him, I took a double take and I told the chauffeur to stop and let me out. I was screaming, ‘Pete, is that you?’”

They brought him back to the fire station where they evaluated his condition and notified authorities. 

“Word went out to every firehouse throughout to be on the lookout for him,” said Peter's son, James Campanelli, also a firefighter. “They always say the FDNY is a brotherhood and it really is.”