Florida businessman worried for family in Poland after explosion

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Jerry Maresca owns and operates the I Love Pierogi food truck. He’s concerned about his family still living in Poland after a missile explosion Tuesday night.

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — It’s a deadly mistake that almost launched another war. Both Poland’s president and the Secretary General of NATO believe that Tuesday night’s missile came from the Ukrainian air defense system used to combat a recent barrage of Russian attacks. On Wednesday NATO determined that Tuesday night’s missile explosion in Poland was likely an accident.

However, that accident isn’t sitting well with a Polish man living on the First Coast. Half a world away from the explosion St. Augustine’s Jerry Maresca is concerned about the safety of his family still living in Poland.

Maresca was born and raised in Poland and still has family there after moving to America in 1987.

“I’ve got only one daughter with 2 grandchildren and that’s all my world,” said Maresca, “and I’m worried because we live on that side of the border, which is not far away, especially for missiles.”

Maresca owns and operates the I Love Pierogi food truck. While he prepared for a busy stretch of bookings his mind went back to his loved ones near harm’s way.

“I don’t want my kids to fight, I don’t want to go back there and fight, we just want a peaceful solution,” said Maresca, “the missile changed everything.”

The missile that landed in Poland is believed to have been fired by Ukraine, but the Secretary General of NATO does not fault Ukraine.

“Russia bears ultimate responsibility as it continues its illegal war against Ukraine,” said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

As Maresca prepared for a night working on his food truck his daughter and grandchildren aren’t the only people he’s concerned about. Maresca also took in Ukrainian Vasal Borijnow shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in the spring. Bojirnow is from a small village near Kyiv.

“Every day he’s calling to parents to make sure they’re okay,” said Maresca, who translated for Bojirnow, “but he didn’t get a signal from them so he’s concerned and worried because it has been a couple days since he’s talked to them.”

Maresca said that after the missile exploded in Poland he booked a flight to travel back to his home country to visit his daughter and grandchildren. If he feels the situation is too dangerous for them then he plans to bring them back to Florida to live with him.