FDNY death: Firefighter Timothy Klein honored with firehouse bunting ceremony

NEW YORK - The death of FDNY Firefighter Timothy Klein has shaken the department, which has now lost two firefighters so far in 2022. 

In a somber ceremony on Monday, the FDNY honored Klein by draping the facade of the Brooklyn firehouse where he worked with bunting. Dozens of firefighters, fire officers, department and city leaders, and members of Klein's family gathered outside for the tribute.  

Working from inside a raised bucket on a fire truck, two firefighters draped six half-circles of purple-and-black bunting in pairs over the vehicle doors of Engine 257 and Ladder 170 in Canarsie. 

Two chaplains then each recited a prayer. 

After they finished, the attendees saluted while the pipes and drums band played Amazing Grace.

Captain Mark Schweighardt called Klein an "officer's dream."

"He was the guy you looked to and all the men and women in this house looked to. Timmy was squared away — he knew his job," Schweighardt said. "The department will now honor him and take care of his family. We will miss him and we will never forget him."

Klein responded to a fire at a home on Avenue N on Sunday afternoon. Part of the building's ceiling collapsed onto Klein, killing him, officials said. The fire killed a civilian, too. 

Hanging dark bunting on firehouses when a member has died is a tradition of many fire departments around the country.

Mayor Eric Adams has ordered flags on city buildings to be lowered to half-staff until the day of Klein's burial.