A hero metropolis firefighter who as soon as saved a girl in a wheelchair from a burning constructing was killed Thursday when he crashed his moped on the FDR Drive and was struck by a hit-and-run driver.
Matthew Goicochea, 31 – a firefighter for about three years – was using his 2023 Yamaha cycle north on the FDR approaching East twenty fifth Road in Manhattan when he out of the blue misplaced management and fell off the bike because it dropped to the bottom, cops mentioned.
One other passing automobile struck Goicochea as he lay on the pavement, and the motorist drove off with out stopping, police mentioned.
Goicochea was taken to Bellevue Hospital, the place he succumbed to his accidents.
The motive force has not been caught.
“The FDNY mourns the lack of Firefighter Matthew Goicochea, who tragically handed away early Thursday morning,” the division mentioned in a press release.
“Goicochea was using his bike on the FDR drive when he collided with one other automobile.
“He joined the Division in September of 2022, and was a recipient of the Thomas Wylie Medal in 2024 for rescuing an unconscious sufferer from a fireplace within the Bronx,” the FDNY added.
That blaze broke out round 1:15 a.m. Aug. 14, 2023, inside a constructing within the Morris Park part of The Bronx.
The FDNY mentioned that regardless of the “blinding visibility,” Goicochea encountered the sufferer “in a rear bed room.
“Realizing the sufferer was entangled in a wheelchair, FF Goicochea labored rapidly to start eradicating the sufferer,” the division wrote in its 2024 Medal Day booklet.
“With situations within the hearth condominium quickly worsening and no hoseline but in place, FF Goicochea made his transfer previous the now-extending hearth whereas shielding the sufferer along with his physique.”
The division counseled Goicochea for his “fast and decisive actions [that] led to the rescue” – all whereas placing himself “at nice private threat.”
