The former FDNY Battalion Chief who gained renown for his rescue and recovery work after the 9/11 terrorist attacks recently died from 9/11 related cancer.

At age 76, former FDNY Battalion Chief Robert Miuccio passed away from 9/11 related cancer. Miuccio’s passing follows his two year battle with lung cancer, a 9/11 related cancer he developed after being exposed to the fumes from Ground Zero.

“Battalion Chief Robert Miuccio fought the devil (cancer) like the warrior he was!” wrote John Feal, president of the Feal Good Foundation, an advocacy group for 9/11 victims, speaking to the New York Daily News. “Collectively the 9/11 community mourns with our Brothers & Sisters in the FDNY.”

In 2001, Miuccio’s brother Richard worked on the 86^th floor of the World Trade Center. Although Richard died in the attacks, Miuccio pushed aside his grief and led firefighters in the effort to recover the remains of the deceased. For three and a half months, he oversaw hundreds of firefighters as they sorted through the rubble.

Miuccio’s son, Robert Miuccio Jr., is also a retired firefighter and says his father maintained a dedication to the fire department long after his retirement. “My dad never stopped thinking about the guys in the department,” Miuccio Jr. said to the Daily News. “When we were at the hospital, he was talking in his sleep. ‘Come on boys! We gotta put the fire out.'”

To the end of his life, Miuccio fought his 9/11 related cancer with strength and determination, reminiscent of his time as a firefighter in New York as well as his time as a radar and weapons technician during the Vietnam War.

“He came out of radiation treatment and was running up and down a basketball court, still coaching at 74,” Miuccio Jr. said of his father. “He was living for his children and grandchildren.”

Despite the fact that Miuccio’s death was a result of his exposure to toxic materials during the 9/11 aftermath, his son says he would not have changed his involvement in the recovery efforts. “He loved taking care of the people of the city. He loved being a fireman. He wouldn’t have changed a thing.”

Miuccio Jr., who also struggles with 9/11 related illnesses, reflects on his own involvement in the 9/11 recovery effort. “For so many of us, everything stopped or changed that day,” he said. “You move on with your life but for us, you’re stuck in 9/11.” He asks that the people of New York keep first responders struggling with 9/11 related cancer and illnesses in their thoughts.

Although there are countless first responders suffering from 9/11 related cancer illnesses, this problem is not exclusively affecting first responders. All persons near Ground Zero who were exposed to the toxic dust and fumes released from the 9/11 wreckage are at risk for 9/11 related cancer. Any individual who is suffering from 9/11 related cancer, whether or not they are a first responder, may be eligible for compensation via the September 11^th Victim Compensation Fund. The fund can compensate those affected by the terrorist attacks and suffering from 9/11 related cancer or illnesses.