ORLANDO, Fla. — An Orlando firefighter has taken his own life. This is just one of several firefighter deaths 9 Investigates has covered over the past few years.
While the fire department is dealing with what it describes as a crisis in fire services, the Orlando firefighters union said the city isn’t doing enough and wants to see more done on mental health.
Orlando firefighter Mike Rodriguez and Jeff Huggins were best friends since they were 6 years old. The two played on the same Pop Warner football team and eventually both became firefighters and worked for the Orlando Fire Department.
Huggins always wanted to be a firefighter, which isn’t surprising considering both of his parents were public servants, one with the Orange County Fire Department and the other with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
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But Huggins’ life was cut short in April, and it’s unclear exactly why.
Rodriguez and other friends spent the day together that day, and she told Channel 9, “It felt so normal. Looking back, it was like his last hurrah with his friends. It was his last day of fun in the sun with him.”
There was no indication that he was unwell the night he killed himself.
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When asked if he believed the suicide was work-related, Rodriguez replied, “1,000 percent.”
“His mental distress, some of the things that were said prior to that, were not understood until after his death,” he said. “Whether it was gossip or trying to justify what he said to his colleagues, I think what he was doing took a huge toll on him. One of the reasons I’m sitting here is because we don’t know all the signs and symptoms.”
Fire departments across the country are grappling with what’s being described as a mental health crisis among firefighters.
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According to the Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance, between 2014 and 2020, more firefighters died by suicide than died in the line of duty.
According to the authors, there have been more than 2,000 firefighter suicides since 2010, and the number is likely to rise to more than 100 by 2023.
Florida has had five cases in the past two months.
The Orlando firefighters union is pushing for a more up-to-date mental health plan.
“The Orlando Fire Department has an outdated mental health system,” Rodriguez said. “All we’re asking for is a progressive, proactive way to seek help.”
They have a peer support group but they don’t have a contract with the city and there’s no clear answer as to why.
Members told Channel 9 the city’s plan is reactive rather than proactive, and firefighters said they would like to be better educated in advance on how to respond and spot the warning signs.
He said the city of Orlando has a comprehensive plan.
The Critical Incident Stress Management Policy has been updated for 2023 but staff have not yet been employed as they are still undergoing training.
A city spokesman said firefighters also have access to an employee assistance program, free mental health counseling, chaplains and psychologists covered by their insurance.
They also said they have a contract with UCF Restores, a program that treats emergency medical personnel with traumatic injuries.
“We will continue to evaluate these efforts and consider how we can further contribute to the wellbeing of our public safety officers,” the spokesperson said.
For Huggins, that wasn’t enough. Now his friends and family say they’ll do anything to raise awareness of the disease to prevent what happened to him from happening to anyone else.
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