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Lodi Firefighter, 48, Dies On Vacation
What began as a holiday trip ended tragically for a beloved Lodi firefighter, his fellow first responders and loved ones.
Antonio Mercado III died in a Texas hospital on Monday after being admitted several days earlier, friends and fellow firefighters said.
Mercado, who'd suffered from heart trouble, had been with Lodi Rescue Truck Co. 1. Before that, he rode with Hose Co. 1.
A father and grandfather, he was 48.
Visiting is this Sunday, Jan. 30, at Funeraria Alvarez, 66 Passaic Avenue in Passaic: (973) 815-0080.
Time frames will be strict, according to his daughter, Antonia Mercado…
Repeat Offender’s 200 Hospital Transports, Assault On EMT Worry East Bergen Responders
EMTs in neighboring Bergenfield, Dumont, New Milford and elsewhere in Bergen County know 53-year-old Dean Mancini, and not in a good way: Homeless and often combative, he’s been transported to hospitals an estimated 200 times the past year alone, they say.
Mancini's arrest sheet stretches 25 years, mostly for non-violent crimes in towns that include Englewood, Fort Lee, Garfield, Maywood, New Milford, Teaneck and Tenafly.
Records also show as many parole violations as disorderly persons arrests -- although there also was an aggravated assault a decade ago.
As a result, Mancini hasn’t done …
Disturbed Ridgefield Park Teen Battles Little Ferry Police, EMTs, Humc Security Guard
An emotionally disturbed Ridgefield Park teen punched, kicked or spit in the faces of Little Ferry police officers, EMTs and a hospital security guard after threatening to cut his wrists, authorities said.
Police called by his ex-girlfriend to a park on Main Street said the 17-year-old at first seemed fine.
His mother told them, however, that he had emotional issues, Capt. James Walters said.
Police convinced him to relent – but then the teen began punching and spitting at them when an ambulance arrived, Walters said.
Although they restrained him on a stretcher, the captain said, he conti…
