When a New York City firefighter dies in the line of duty, the fire bells ring 20 times: five rings, followed by a pause, and again, and again, and again.
The 5-5-5-5 code rang for Bronx fireman Ray Pfeifer, who died Sunday at the age of 59 from cancer, years after he spent eight months following the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, in rescue and recovery work at the World Trade Center atop the smoldering, toxic wreckage.
Having undergone rounds of chemotherapy and radiation and surgery, even having part of a leg amputated, the cancer still advanced: into his lungs, his adrenal glands and his brain.