BUFFALO, N.Y. — The City of Buffalo is a step closer to agreeing to pay out a multimillion dollar settlement to a firefighter hurt on the job in 2019.
Buffalo firefighter Eric Whitehead sued the City and the Buffalo Fire Department in the summer of 2019 after he was hurt fighting a fire on Butler Avenue that January.
Wednesday afternoon, the Buffalo Common Council Claims Committee voted to send a recommendation to pay Whitehead a $2.3 million settlement to the full common council for a vote. This means the full council will vote on whether to officially approve the payment next month.
"It's going to be financial security for he and his wife and their three children. He knows he's not going to be forced to go back to work when he physically is not able to because he injured his hands, but it puts a closure to the whole thing, and it gives him a lot of security going forward for the rest of his life," says Whitehead's attorney, Charles Desmond.
Whitehead suffered severe burns on his hands after removing his gloves in the fire to activate his man down button. He was running out of air, and he couldn't activate it with his gloves on.
Whitehead's lawsuit said the Buffalo Fire Department didn't follow rules, procedures, and policies the night of the fire.
"I think it's become very clear that allowing firefighters to work out of class where they're not properly trained, instructed, and certified is a safety hazard and this was example one," Desmond said.
Whitehead's attorney says he's doing quite well after having multiple procedures done on his hands.
The Buffalo Common Council next meets on March 8.