NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – An FDNY member and former U.S. Marine captain with PTSD has sued the fire department and the city, claiming he was harassed and hazed at his firehouse in Queens.
Charles Hughes, 32, filed the lawsuit in Brooklyn Federal Court, according to the New York Post.
Hughes reportedly joined the FDNY in 2019 after retiring from the Marine Corps in 2014.
In the lawsuit, he said he endured repeated harassment at Ladder 151 in Queens, including being doused with water and flour on his first day. He said when he and other probies went to see their lieutenant, they were instead met by a firefighter wearing a thong.
Hughes said fellow firefighters would also ridicule his mental health, writing phrases like "off the wall" and "operation cuckoo" on his firehouse photograph, calling him "crazy," and saying, "no one gives a s*** about your military service," according to the suit.
He claimed a rumor was spread about him that he went home drunk after leaving work ill in March. And he said he was targeted in the fire company's online group chat, with members telling him he was "sensitive" and "should leave the firehouse if he could not handle the abuse," according to the suit.
An FDNY spokesperson told the Post the department took immediate action after hearing about Hughes' complaints and gave him a new assignment. One of the firefighters Hughes accused was reportedly reassigned as well.
