By Laura French
CHICAGO — A Chicago firefighter was shot on Sunday morning while responding to a car fire on the city’s Northwest Side.
Authorities said at a press conference that the 36-year-old firefighter, whose name was not released, was at the scene of the fire when an “unknown offender” began firing, striking him in the left leg, NBC Chicago reported.
The shooting occurred shortly after 1 a.m. Fire and police officials said they did not believe the firefighter, a six-year veteran of the department, was the intended target of the shooting.
The Chicago Police Department said in a Facebook post later Sunday morning that three guns possibly related to the incident were recovered, and that police were processing video from the scene that may help identify a suspect.
A trauma surgeon at Illinois Masonic Medical Center, where the firefighter is receiving treatment, said a full recovery is expected within six to eight weeks.
“95% of the time the public, in fact, is very caring about the fire department,” said Chicago Fire Department Commissioner Richard C. Ford II. “I just think this is something that was unfortunate.”