{"id":129489,"date":"2026-02-11T00:08:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T00:08:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/129489\/"},"modified":"2026-02-11T00:08:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T00:08:16","slug":"fdny-probie-son-of-windows-on-world-chef-killed-on-9-11-felt-called-to-serve","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/129489\/","title":{"rendered":"FDNY probie, son of Windows on World chef killed on 9\/11, felt called to serve"},"content":{"rendered":"

The worst day of Probationary Firefighter Jerrell Nedd\u2019s young life was on 9\/11 when terrorists flew passenger jets into the World Trade Center<\/a>, killing his father, a chef at Windows on the World restaurant atop the North Tower, and more than 2,700 others.<\/p>\n

But something unique happened out of this tragedy \u2014 Nedd found a calling.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe FDNY and my family, we shared the worst day in our histories,\u201d Nedd said as he prepared to graduate from the FDNY Fire Academy on Wednesday. \u201cI lost a dad, and they lost 343 other members. Yet they still ran into the buildings, trying to bring my dad home. I just wanted to be a part of that. I wanted to help people like they had.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nedd was 9 when his father, Jerome Nedd, was killed. He spent most of his youth with the families of other 9\/11 victims and, through it all, the FDNY was always there to lend a hand, he said.<\/p>\n

\"ProbationaryProbationary firefighter Jerrell Nedd (left) with his brother, Jerome Nedd (right), and their mother, Roxanne. (FDNY)<\/p>\n

\u201cThe FDNY stood by me,\u201d he said. \u201cI wanted to be a part of that brotherhood.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jerrell\u2019s father came to the U.S. from Trinidad as a boy and was a track star at Tilden and Sheepshead Bay high schools<\/a>. His family still lives in Brooklyn. He graduated from New York Restaurant School with a certificate in culinary arts in 1999. Within two years, he was a chef at the elite Windows on the World restaurant. He was 39 when he was killed.<\/p>\n

As he waited to be called to the Fire Academy, Jerrell became an FDNY emergency medical technician. He graduated the EMS Academy just a few weeks before the 2020 pandemic gripped the city and New York went into lockdown.<\/p>\n

\"JeromeJerome Nedd Sr., who was a chef at the Windows on the World in the World Trade Center and died on 9\/11, holding his son, Jerrell, in an undated photo. (FDNY)<\/p>\n

The experience of being an EMS \u201cstreet doctor\u201d during one of the worst medical emergencies in the city\u2019s history not only taught him how to handle stress under pressure, but it also taught him a great deal of humility \u2014 and made him love his calling even more.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou learn a lot about yourself when you take care of someone on their worst day,\u201d he remembered. \u201cI was 26 years old, dealing with people having such a tough time, with family members passing and the struggles they were going through. It was a very humbling experience. When they call 911, you have to treat them with respect and humanity, and be a shining beacon of that all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

His stint as an EMT, which ended as an instructor, will certainly help as a firefighter. Last week, Fire Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said that two-thirds of all 911 calls to the FDNY are for medical emergencies<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"ProbationaryProbationary FDNY firefighter Jerrell Nedd. (FDNY)<\/p>\n

Fire companies are expected to help out when EMS units get bogged down in the deluge, Bonsignore said.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone (in the FDNY) is in the game on handling that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Nedd is also following in his older brother\u2019s footsteps. Jerome Nedd, his father\u2019s namesake, became a firefighter in 2024.<\/p>\n

\u201cI almost didn\u2019t make it because of the age restriction,\u201d Jerrell Nedd, 33, said. \u201cThis is a dream come true. When I was really young I wanted to be a doctor. But now I\u2019m helping people in a different way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ProbationaryProbationary FDNY Firefighter Jerrell Nedd. (FDNY)<\/p>\n

Of the 181 Fire Academy graduates, 126 have either been department EMTs, paramedics or EMS officers, the department said. They were given the chance to become firefighters through a department promotional exam.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am proud to welcome this class of 181 probationary firefighters to New York\u2019s Bravest, my first class as Fire commissioner,\u201d Bonsignore said Tuesday. \u201cMany of them began their journeys with the FDNY as EMTs and have already done the hard work of serving the public.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI am so proud of what they have already done, and what they are sure to do as firefighters: protect lives and property in our great city,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

As he graduates with 180 other probies at Brooklyn\u2019s Christian Cultural Center on Wednesday, Nedd\u2019s brother, mother and grandmother will be cheering him on. He\u2019ll also be remembering his father and the many trips they took together to Canada to go ice fishing.<\/p>\n

He will also remember his father\u2019s mastery in the kitchen and his famous curry goat recipe, which he hopes to make for his brothers at his new firehouse.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I want to have it down pat before I do it,\u201d he said. \u201cI don\u2019t want to scare people away.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The worst day of Probationary Firefighter Jerrell Nedd\u2019s young life was on 9\/11 when terrorists flew passenger jets…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":129490,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[128,262,263,266,85,267,9,24,264,12,63,261,265,129,131,130],"class_list":["post-129489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-the-bronx","tag-bronx","tag-city","tag-county","tag-crime-and-public-safety","tag-latest-headlines","tag-local-news","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-county","tag-news","tag-nyc","tag-nyc-crime","tag-sub-county-region","tag-the-bronx","tag-the-bronx-headlines","tag-the-bronx-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=129489"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129489\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/129490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=129489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=129489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=129489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}