Housing Officer Dies in Wake of Coney Island Fire

By MACKENZIE GANTER & JOAN MARTINEZ

One of the officers who was overcome by smoke inhalation and carbon monoxide poisoning after an arson-related fire in a Coney Island high rise died at Montefiore Hospital Wednesday.

Housing police officer Dennis Guerra, 38, had been in critical condition since Sunday when he and his patrol partner responded to the fire at 2007 Surf Avenue and took the elevator to the 13th floor rather than using the stairs, the recommended protocol.

He was declared brain dead.

Guerra had undergone blood transfusions in an effort to pump the carbon monoxide out of his blood but the treatment was of no avail. He was married with four children and was an eight-year-veteran of the force.

The second officer, Rosa Rodriguez remained in critical condition at Weill Cornell Medical Center. She was placed in a hyperbaric chamber and showed signs of improvement.

The fire started on the 13th floor allegedly set by 16-year-old Marcell Dockery who lit a mattress on fire because be reportedly told police he was bored and “wanted excitement.” Dockery was charged with arson, assault, reckless endangerment, and robbery in an unrelated incident.

The incident has prompted the police department to review the policy on how officers respond to fires.

Rodriguez, 36, of Queens, is four-year veteran of the force and a mother of four.w

Rodriguez and Guerra were the first to arrive at the scene. Video footage from the elevator showed that the officers were enveloped in a blast of toxic smoke as the elevator doors opened to the thirteenth floor. Firefighters dragged both of the unconscious officers from the building.

“The residents of Unity Towers wish the officers a speedy recovery,” said Wanda Feliciano, president of the tenants association. “We are not bad people.”

Feliciano said that the fire was an “isolated incident,” and defended Dockery’s mother saying, “She is a nice person who goes to church.”