“Steve and Mich are heroes. We come here every year to honor not just them but also their families and children. Salina, Aaron, Andrew, Thomas, and Margaret need to know that we will never forget their fathers. They devoted their lives to protecting my family and all the families of Bridgeport.” – Mayor Bill Finch
- WHO: Mayor Bill Finch, Fire Chief Brian Rooney, city firefighters.
- WHAT: Memorial service remembering fire Lt. Steven Velasquez and Firefighter Michel Baik.
- WHEN: Friday, July 24, 2015 at 9:00 a.m.
- WHERE: St. Ann’s church at 481 Brewster St., Bridgeport, at 9 a.m. A ceremony will follow at 10:30 a.m. at the Engine 7/Ladder 11 firehouse at 245 Ocean Terrace.
Bridgeport, Conn. (July 23, 2014) – Tomorrow, Mayor Bill Finch, Fire Chief Brian Rooney and city firefighters will honor two fallen heroes at a memorial service for fire Lt. Steven Velasquez and Firefighter Michel Baik, who died in the line of duty fighting a July 24, 2010, house fire.
“Steve and Michel are heroes,” said Mayor Bill Finch. “We come here every year to honor not just them but also their families and children. Salina, Aaron, Andrew, Thomas, and Margaret need to know that we will never forget their fathers. They devoted their lives to protecting my family and all the families of Bridgeport.”
Velasquez and Baik, who were assigned to Ladder 11, were searching for possible victims during the fire on Elmwood Avenue five years ago when they put out mayday calls.
On the one-year anniversary, the department erected a five-foot, granite monument in their memory. It bears the symbol of the Bridgeport Fire Department along with a firefighter’s helmet and the names of the fallen firefighters.
Velasquez left behind a wife and two children. Baik left behind a wife and three children.