Trenton Firefighter Grazed By Stray Bullet While Working Out At Fire Station
TRENTON, N.J. (CBS) -- Bullet holes tell the tale of what happened at a Trenton firehouse Tuesday night. Stray bullets flew in and one grazed a firefighter.
Firefighters face a lot of dangers on the job, like smoke and flames. But they expect to be safe when they come back here to the firehouse.
That sense of security was shattered when gunfire struck the back of the building, wounding one firefighter inside.
"My wife said there was a whole lot of shots," said Emir Roberts, who lives nearby.
A stray bullet pierced the glass on the second floor of the Engine 1 firehouse, grazing a firefighter in his left arm as he was working out in the weight room around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday night.
"Scary moment to know that one of my firefighters could have actually got killed," Trenton Fire Department Director Kenneth Douglas said.
Police say the shooting actually began in front of the firehouse on Calhoun Street. Cops say two people were shooting at each other.
One of them chased the other through the parking lot while still shooting, resulting in the firefighter's injury. He was taken to the hospital and released.
"We're here to protect the public, not to fear for our life and have the public do something to hurt us," Douglas said.
Another bullet went into the firehouse kitchen but didn't hit anyone.
"It actually penetrated the wall and was lodged in the refrigerator. One bullet hit one firefighter, one barely missed the others that were sitting in the kitchen," Douglas said.
Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora says firefighters sometimes wear bulletproof vests while putting out fires in violence-prone areas.
Do firefighters need to start wearing bulletproof vests inside the fire station now?
"No, I think that our houses are safe. We're going to secure the building," Gusciora said.
Secure the building with bulletproof glass so this doesn't happen again.
While the wounded firefighter recovers at home, the fire director has this urgent plea.
"Put these guns down. This is the state's capital and it's not the wild, wild west," Douglas said.
The fire director says the wounded firefighter will be receiving counseling for his trauma, though the mayor says the firefighter remains in good spirits.
Police say they're confident an arrest will be made soon.
