2 FDNY Members Among 7 Killed In Iraq Helicopter Crash

NEW YORK, NY — An FDNY lieutenant and fire marshal were among the seven people killed when a U.S. military helicopter crashed in Iraq Thursday, city officials said. Lt. Christopher Raguso and Fire Marshal Christopher "Tripp" Zanetis were on the HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter that went down in the western portion of the country, the Fire Department said in a statement Friday evening.

Both men were members of the New York Air National Guard in addition to their service as firefighters, according to Newsday. All personnel on the helicopter with them were killed in the crash around 6:45 p.m. Thursday, the U.S. Department of Defense said in a statement.

"Lt. Raguso and Fire Marshal Zanetis bravely wore two uniforms in their extraordinary lives of service – as
New York City Firefighters and as members of the United States Armed Forces," Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said in a statement. "The hearts and prayers of the entire Department are with their loved ones and with the families of their five fellow service members who lost their lives defending our country."

Raguso, of Commack, Long Island, started as a firefighter in Flatbush, Brooklyn in March 2005 and moved to Queens when he became a lieutenant in 2016, the FDNY said.

Raguso was cited for bravery six times as an FDNY firefighter, the department said. He was also a volunteer lieutenant in the Commack Fire Department on Long Island.

"Chris was always there to help anyone with anything, he would never say no," the Commack Fire Department wrote on Facebook Friday afternoon. "Please keep Chris and his family in your thoughts and prayers."

Zanetis started as a firefighter on the Lower East Side in September 2004 and became a fire marshal in April 2013, the FDNY said. He volunteered at Ground Zero before joining the FDNY, Newsday reported. He was recognized for bravery as part of an investigative unit in 2014, the Fire Department said.

"There will never be anyone like Tripp," Zanetis' sister, Angela Zanetis of Carmel, Indiana, told Newsday. “Tripp died fighting for our country.”

The crash that killed Raguso and Zanetis is under investigation but did not "appear to be a result of enemy activity," the Department of Defense said. Iraqi security forces on the ground responded and helped secure the scene, the department said.

"This tragedy reminds us of the risks our men and women face every day in service of our nations," Army Brig. Gen. Jonathan P. Braga, the director of operations for Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve, said in a statement.

President Donald Trump offered his condolences in a Friday morning tweet.

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and loved ones of the brave troops lost in the helicopter crash on the Iraq-Syria border yesterday," Trump wrote. "Their sacrifice in service to our country will never be forgotten."

(Lead image: FDNY Lt. Christopher Raguso and Fire Marshal Christopher "Tripp" Zanetis were among seven people killed Thursday in a military helicopter crash in Iraq. Photos courtesy of the FDNY)