John B. O�Dowd, a vice president of New York City-based engineering firm STV Corp. and a retired colonel in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers who commanded its New York district during the 9/11 terror attack in lower Manhattan, died Jan. 26 at age 54. He suffered a sudden heart attack while in flight on business.

O'DOWD

O’Dowd joined STV in 2007 as vice president in its construction management division, providing oversight for two projects on which the firm was involved at the former World Trade Center site: the Freedom Tower and the National September 11 Memorial and Museum. He was also named head of its federal sector business development group last October.

O'Dowd also previously served as New York-based associate vice president of federal services at HNTB Corp., Kansas City.

O’Dowd joined the firm after a 28-year Army career. He served as a commander of Corps districts in New York City and Afghanistan, and participated in overseas deployments to Korea, Afghanistan, Haiti, and a number of countries in Latin America. O’Dowd was named Corps district commander in New York two months before the 9/11 terror attack, in September 2001, and was a leader of the city’s initial response and recovery efforts, including removal and disposal of 1.6 million tons of debris.

O'Dowd was a 1978 engineering graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and earned a Master's Degree in environmental engineering from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. He also served twice as president of the New York City post of the Society of American Military Engineers and as an engineering instructor at West Point.

“John brought exceptional leadership and enthusiasm to the firm,� says STV Chairman Dominick Servedio.

A viewing for O'Dowd will be held on Sat. Jan. 30 and Sun. Jan. 31 between 2PM and 5PM and between 7PM and 9PM at McLaughlin & Sons Funeral Home in Brooklyn, N.Y. Funeral Mass is set for Mon., Feb. 1 at 9:30 AM, at St.
Patrick's Church in Brooklyn.