Arthur Barry, 35, was a very mechanical guy, “Mr. Fix-it” at the firehouse. He was technically on vacation on 9/11, but was in Manhattan to drop off a machine he’d fixed at the firehouse. Arriving after the others had left, he geared up and walked over to the scene with Eric Olsen.
In 2000 Barry had taken a 10,000 mile motorcycle excursion across Canada, up to Alaska. When his travel buddy decided to fly back home, Barry rode back across the northern states on his own. He owned three Harleys and was building a sidecar for one that might be used on the next such trip.
The son of a retired FDNY fireboat captain, Barry was an elevator mechanic before being appointed to the FDNY in 1993.