Some friends forget to call Pittston Mayor Mike Lombardo on his birthday, but they always remember to reach out every March 15.
Tragedy struck the Pittston area that day in 1993 when his brother John, 25, a Pittston firefighter, and Leonard Insalaco, 20, a West Pittston fireman, died in a ferocious blaze on North Main Street in the city.
Today marks 25 years. A wreath-laying ceremony will be held today at 6:30 p.m. at a monument dedicated to the men on Kennedy Boulevard. A Mass will follow at 7 p.m. at the St. John the Evangelist Church.
“Sometimes we say, ‘Lest we forget,’ and then we forget. It’s nice to see people didn’t forget,” Lombardo said. “It’s hard to believe it’s been 25 years.”