Roses for a Life-Saving Fire Patrolman

By Sandy Keenan | STAFF WRITER

September 21, 2001

Staten Island's Keith Roma so loved his job as a New York fire patrolman, he would show up at the stationhouse on West Third Street in Greenwich Village the evening before his shift started, carrying groceries for dinner.

He once stopped a young woman who was crying as she walked by the stationhouse. When he found out she was upset over the anniversary of her mother's death, Roma bought her a dozen pink roses.

"He was very, very personal," said patrolman Frank Tepedino. "You don't find a dry eye here."

When the call came in Sept. 11, Keith Roma, 27, phoned his father, Arnie, and said: "Dad, you won't believe it, the World Trade Center is going."

"I told him, 'Keith, I'll meet you there,'" said Arnie Roma, a former fire patrolman and retired New York Police Department officer who is now a registered nurse.

The son wound up in the lobby of Tower One, evacuating civilians. The father was in the lobby of Tower Two when it collapsed. He escaped through a hole in the wall on the Liberty Street side.

Keith Roma was standing beside Fire Patrol Sgt. John Sheehan when Tower Two collapsed. Sheehan managed to get out; Roma did not. He is the only fire patrol officer missing of the 18 who initially responded.

The New York Fire Patrol consists of 97 employees based at three city stationhouses. Funded by companies that write fire insurance policies, the fire patrol's mission is to respond to calls and help salvage property. Once on site, the Fire Patrol is under the command of the fire department.

"At that point, there was no salvage work to be done; it was all life-saving work," Arnie Roma said.

At first, Keith Roma was not listed among those in the fire department who were lost in the line of duty.

"The young man is a hero and his family is suffering a great deal," said Dennis Rowe, president of the New York Board of Fire Underwriters. "We want our member to be recognized."

Yesterday the department confirmed that Keith Roma would be added to the list. "Although Fire Patrol is not officially a part of the fire department of New York, they are considered a part of our family," an official statement read.

Keith is also survived by his mother, Rosemary, brother Kevin, 33, sister Maureen, 32, and 7-year-old daughter, Samantha. Donations may be sent in care of Keith Roma to the United Fire Patrolmen's Association, 240 W. 30th St., New York, N.Y. 10001.

When the Roma family visited Fire Patrol 2 this week, they were overwhelmed by the flowers and cards and the neighborhood. The same young woman Keith had once comforted presented them with a dozen pink roses.