In the Line of Duty

Micheal Zbieski was a polish native who immigrated to the United States when he was 18 years old. After serving with the Marine Corps in World War 1, Zbieski settled in Getzville and joined the Getzville Fire Company. On June 28th, 1934, Zbieski attended a town-wide mutual aid drill at the George F. Lamm American Legion Post on Wehrle Drive. The purpose of the drill was to ascertain company response times to what was considered an "isolated" area. As a pumper from the North Amherst Chemical Company approached the scene, Zbieski darted into its path from a lane of cars parked along the shoulder of the road and was critically injured. On July 1st, Zbieski succumbed to his injuries. He was buried on July 4th - the anniversary of our nation's independence.

Irving Isenberg was a member of the Getzville Fire Company for 29 years, holding various titles including Fire Chief from 2007-2011 and President from 2016-2018. In 2001, Irv and three other Getzville firefighters took part in a state-wide mutual aid deployment to Ground Zero after the September 11th attacks. He was part of a team that rescued three individuals from the rubble around Albany and West Streets, using a map ripped out of a phone book to help guide them to nearby hospitals. Sixteen years later, Irv was diagnosed with multiple cancers linked to time spent at Ground Zero. He died on November 1, 2019. He was 55.

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Three months before he passed, Irv was interviewed by a reporter in Buffalo 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.”