TROY, N.Y. — An Iraq war veteran who has been undergoing post-traumatic stress disorder treatment over the past three years is set to lose his job as a firefighter.
Firefighter Jeffrey Wright, 36, has been fighting to keep his job since 2010 when the city put him on leave. He has been in treatment for PTSD related to his combat in Iraq since 2009, according to the Times Union.
Firefighter Wright was a staff sergeant and served in Iraq for more than a year from 2004 and became a firefighter in 2007.
Last December, he was notified by a letter from his fire chief that he was being considered for termination under Civil Service Law, according to the article, and he is due to be lose his job Friday.
"…you have been continuously absent from the Troy Fire Department and unable to perform the duties of a firefighter for more than one year by reason of a disability…"the letter read. “As permitted by Section 73 of the NYS Civil Service Law, it is the city’s intention to terminate your employment.”
While in combat, firefighter Wright was in combat theater and witnessed the deaths of soldiers and civilians and was part of an attack where an explosive device hit his convoy, the article said. After returning home and getting into an altercation with his father-in-law, he decided to enroll in PTSD treatment.
Although he acknowledges his anxiety problems stemming from his PTSD and the tensions between him and his fire chief, firefighter Wright said there has been a lack of understanding and appreciation of his situation.
“They have tried to paint a very misleading picture of what’s going on here,” he said.
An attorney is working with the Troy Professional Fire Fighters Local 86 to help firefighter Wright get his job back.