NYPD Det. Joseph V. Vigiano and his brother, FDNY Firefighter John T. Vigiano, were among the thousands of first responders who ran toward danger at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.
They never returned home.
On Tuesday, the brothers were remembered at Ground Zero during a wreath-laying ceremony held by the Detectives Endowment Association, as surviving family members spoke about the bonds that carried them through the devastating aftermath of the terrorist attacks.
“Post-9/11, after I lost my father, the officers of the 75th precinct became a second family to me,” said Joseph Vigiano Jr., who followed his father into the NYPD, as he placed his hand on the names of his father and uncle inscribed at the National September 11 Memorial.
“It’s a nice thing, the DEA keeping my father’s memory alive.”
His father, Joseph Vigiano, was only 34 when he raced into the North Tower, trying to rescue those trapped inside. He and Claude “Dan” Richards were the only two NYPD detectives killed in the attacks that day.
John Vigiano, 36, died with four fellow members of the FDNY’s Ladder Company 132 after they entered the South Tower shortly before its collapse.
At the World Trade Center site, the DEA placed a wreath bearing the words “Never Forgotten” in tribute to the three heroes. The union also displayed photographs of the 79 NYPD detectives who have died from 9/11-related illnesses after responding to the terror attack 25 years ago.
“We’re remembering all of our detectives, not just those who passed on 9/11 but also those that have passed from 9/11 related illnesses,” said DEA President Scott Munroe to The Post.
“We have three in hospice right now. This number just keeps going up. We will remember every year, not just this year.”
The Vigiano brothers’ ultimate sacrifice lives on through Joseph’s three sons, Joseph Jr., John and Jimmy, all of whom followed in their father and uncle’s footsteps by pursuing their own careers as first responders — a family tradition that was the subject of the 2025 documentary “Twin Towers: Legacy.”
All three sons served in the US Marines, where John continues to work. Joseph and Jimmy are in the NYPD, which is also where their mother worked and where their parents met.
“Their father would be very proud of all three of our boys … They’re just living to honor their father,” said widow Kathy Vigiano as she looked on at Joseph Jr. in his NYPD uniform.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch and Gov. Kathy Hochul also attended the service, with the governor coming from a dedication ceremony honoring the members of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey killed in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and on 9/11.
