The two Rochester-area firefighters who survived the Christmas Eve shooting that claimed the lives of two comrades say it's going to be a long road back to recovery. Speaking publicly for the first time Wednesday, Joseph Hofstetter and Theodore Scardino thanked the public for the support after both were shot the morning of Dec. 24 at the scene of a house fire in Webster. Two other firefighters were killed when William Spengler opened fire on them as they arrived on the scene.
Hofstetter said he didn't realize the "popping noise" he heard as he arrived on the scene was gunfire.
"You don't ever expect somebody to be firing at you at a fire scene, so I didn't realize it until I was hit," Hofstetter said.
Scardino says after he realized he was shot, he crawled under the fire truck for cover.
"I took a deep breath...and I said I'm going to sit here for five minutes and play dead and this nightmare will be over because the place will be swarming with police. Little did we know how it would unfold. I was under the truck about an hour-and-a-half before I was rescued," Scardino said.
Hofstetter and Scardino are both in physical therapy with hopes of returning to work.
Police say Spengler set fire to the lakeside house he shared with his sister. Authorities believe remains found in the rubble may have been hers. Spengler committed suicide after police arrived.