What to Know
- A 15-year veteran of the FDNY died from injuries he suffered while battling a massive fire at a movie set for an Ed Norton film
- A wake for Michael Davidson was held on Sunday, with a second wake planned for Monday
- A funeral for Davidson will be held at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Tuesday
Friends and family of a firefighter who lost his life when a film set erupted into an inferno mourned their loss Sunday at his wake.
Michael Davidson, 37, died from his injuries while battling the fire at St. Nicholas Avenue and 149th Street Thursday night.
The 15-year veteran got separated from his fellow firefighters while battling the smoky blaze. When firefighters found him, he was unconscious and did not survive his injuries.
He leaves behind a wife and his four young children in Floral Park.
The two-day wake started on Sunday and goes again Monday from 7 to 9 p.m at the Thomas F. Dalton Funeral Home.
The funeral is planned for Tuesday at 10 a.m. at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan.
The fire broke out at an apartment building that is the set of "Motherless Brooklyn," which, according to IMDB, is being directed by Ed Norton and stars Bruce Willis, Willem Dafoe, Alec Baldwin, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Leslie Mann.
Norton took to social media on Saturday to praise the FDNY’s bravery and his film crew’s quick thinking in the wake of a film set inferno that killed Davidson in Harlem last week.
“I have never witnessed firsthand that kind of bravery,” Norton wrote in an Instagram post about the fire. “I’m in awe of that kind of selfless courage.”
Norton added: “It’s devastating to contemplate that one of the men we watched charging in there lost his life. Please send a prayer of thanks for the spirit and courage of Michael Davidson.”
Davidson was promoted posthumously Saturday to a lieutenant. Meanwhile, purple and black bunting hung over Ladder 28 in Harlem, where he served.
His fellow firefighters remembered him fondly.
“We would have block parties in the fire,” Engine 69 Capt. Robert Allen said. “The neighborhood loved him.”
The building that was gutted by the inferno will be demolished on Monday.