Mpls. Firefighters’ Union Wants Body Armor For EMS Personnel

On Feb 13, 2013 07:48 am

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – The president of the Minneapolis Firefighters’ Union wants basic body protection for firefighters who enter active shooting scenes.

We first told you about three Minneapolis firefighters who were among the first people to enter the building at the Accent Signage shootings last fall. All three firefighters went into the building to try and save the lives of the people who were wounded in the mass shooting.

Police officers escorted the firefighters into the building. The officers were all protected with body armor. The three firefighters had no weapons, no bullet-proof vests, or headgear. With the gunman still in the building and armed, those firefighters were entering a situation where they had little protection on their bodies. The head of the Firefighters’ Union tells 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS the EMS personnel need that basic body armor when they enter an active shooting scene.

Union President, Mark Lakosky, tells 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS he’s had conversations with the Fire Chief, after out story aired, and he things something will get done in the near future to address the lack of body protection for firefighters. Lakosky says it would take about 20 t 25-thousand dollars to make sure EMS personnel had the body armor. Lakosky says it will be a lot cheaper to pay that bill now rather than later “after our families get paid for one of us catching a round.”