MAN HELD IN FIRE DEATHS

D.A.: Firefighters Died At Marijuana Operation

The smoky one-alarm blaze that killed two decorated firefighters Friday in
Port Richmond turned into a criminal case yesterday when police charged a
resident with murder and with running a marijuana-growing operation in the
house where the firefighters were killed.

Police said [NAME DELETED], 35, had haphazardly rigged up equipment in the
basement of the rented house on the 3600 block of Belgrade Street. The
plants were intensely heated, creating an environment ripe for fire,
District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham said at a news conference yesterday.

Capt. John Taylor, 53, of Northeast Philadelphia, and firefighter Rey
Rubio, 42, of North Philadelphia, were trapped in the basement and later
died of asphyxiation, according to the Medical Examiner's Office.

Fire officials said Rubio's air pack may have gotten entangled in a web of
wires feeding electricity to the marijuana operation. Firefighters said
Taylor refused to leave Rubio's side.

Both firefighters were assigned to Engine Company 28 in Port Richmond, one
of eight engine and ladder companies the city plans to close to save money.

Mayor Street ordered all firehouses to drape black bunting on their doors
and fly their flags at half-staff out of respect for the fallen firefighters.

At Engine 28, a steady flow of Port Richmond residents dropped off flowers,
baked goods, sandwich platters and sympathy cards.

"To our beloved heroes and saviors," read a note signed by the Gallagher
family. "Thanks for saving our lives."

Friday began as a routine night at the station, with Taylor's platoon
reporting for duty at 6 p.m. and ordering pizza for dinner. They had just
finished eating and were getting ready to watch the Eagles-Baltimore Ravens
preseason game when the call came in about 8 p.m., said firefighter Walter
Milewski, who drove the truck Taylor took to the scene.

"When we first got there, it didn't look different from any other fire,"
said firefighter Robert Myers, a pump operator from one of the assisting
stations. "It just seemed to be taking awfully, awfully long."

The house was smoky, but its four occupants and their two dogs managed to
get out. On the scene for about an hour, Taylor and Rubio went to the
basement to figure out why the smoke wasn't lifting. That's when fire
erupted and the men were trapped, fire officials said.

Taylor ordered a rookie to follow the hoses out of the basement while he
stayed behind to help Rubio, according to firefighter Charles Sgrillo and
Capt. Daniel Skala, close friends of Taylor and his family. Taylor pushed
the distress button on his radio to indicate that he and Rubio were in trouble.

"He was the type of man who would give his life for you," Skala said. "And
that's just what he did."

The deaths were the second and third among city firefighters this year. In
January, Lt. Derrick Harvey, 45, died after he was critically burned at a
one-alarm house fire in Logan.

Police said [NAME DELETED] was charged with two counts of third-degree
murder, two counts of involuntary manslaughter, risking and causing a
catastrophe, possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, and possession
of drug paraphernalia. [NAME DELETED] was awaiting arraignment last night
at Police Headquarters.

The Fire Marshal's Office said the cause was combustible materials too
close to electrical appliances. Fans, lights and heaters were running in
the basement at the time.

Neighbors said [NAME DELETED] was a handyman who lived with his wife,
stepson and mother. According to property records, Anthony V. and Mary Jane
Frasco of Delran, Burlington County, own the house. Neighbors said [NAME
DELETED] is [NAME DELETED] uncle.

[NAME DELETED] was among several neighbors who said they suspected that
[NAME DELETED] and two others on the block were dealing drugs, and that
they had told police.

"The police aren't listening," Pinciotti said.

Police Commissioner Sylvester M. Johnson said at yesterday's news
conference that the narcotics unit never received any complaints about Brough.

Neighbors and firefighters said the tragedy highlights the need for Engine 28.

Many have posted handbills in their windows that read: "No Fire Department
Cutbacks."

City Managing Director Philip R. Goldsmith said the tragedy has not changed
the engine company's status.

"It's not relevant to what occurred," he said.

Taylor, a 32-year veteran, died 12 years to the day he rescued a man from a
North Philadelphia building minutes before it collapsed. The rescue earned
him a heroism award in 1993. Married with two teenage children and a grown
stepson, Taylor had been at Engine 28 for 14 months.

"You wanted to do good by Capt. Taylor because he was so good," firefighter
Milewski said. "He brought out the best in us."

Lt. Pat Grace said Taylor lived and died by the advice he recently gave
Grace. " 'The safety of your men comes first,' he told me. You take care of
your men," Grace said.

Rubio had a child and a second job at a pizza parlor, coworkers said. He
joined the engine company about two months ago after nearly a dozen years
at Ladder 22 in North Philadelphia. He only recently qualified to be a driver.

In 1994, he received a unit citation for helping to evacuate people from a
vacant factory, said firefighter Brian Swearingen, who worked with Rubio
for about 10 years.

"He was conscientious in his duties and a hard worker," Swearingen said.
"He was also funny around the firehouse and always enjoyed a good joke."

More than 100 firefighters gathered at Engine 28 Friday night. Some left
their vacations to show their respect.

"They were two great guys," said firefighter Tom Hillgen of Engine 28. "As
soon as we start to talk about it in here, we all get emotional."

Funeral services for Taylor will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at St. Albert
the Great Church on Welsh Road in Huntingdon Valley, Skala said. It will be
preceded by a viewing at 9 a.m. and will be followed by burial at the
Forest Hills Cemetery on Byberry Road and Philmont Avenue in Lower Moreland.

Funeral services for Rubio will be Thursday, but arrangements were
incomplete, Skala said.