NYFD First Responders Are Priceless

The heart attack death of laid-off firefighter Derek Floyd suggests city leaders need to recall what NYC owes its heroes.

Photo by Tim Wildsmith on Unsplash.

In a city famous for lionizing its heroic first responders, the recent death of laid-off firefighter Derek Floyd has stoked great anger.

“Firefighter, 36, Dies of Heart Attack After Being Laid Off During NYC Budget Cuts,” reported Daniel Johnson for Black Enterprise on April 29, 2024.

“Derek Floyd, a 36-year-old former U.S. Marine and Fire Department of New York probationary fireman, died on April 15 following complications related to a previous heart attack that Floyd suffered in June 2019 while working as a fireman,” Johnson added.

“NYC Firefighter, 36, dies of a heart attack after being fired to pay for migrants — leaving his family with nothing,” echoed Craig McCarthy and Alex Oliveira for the New York Post.

“Derek Floyd, 36, suffered cardiac arrest and passed away April 15, four months after the city gave him the boot as part of a larger effort to pare staff and pay for housing and services for the tens of thousands of migrants flooding the Big Apple,” wrote the pair. “Floyd was one of about 10 fire department employees who had been on ‘long-term duty’ — either injured on the job and given office work or out sick for an extended period — and fired weeks…