Six D.C. Fire and EMS workers were placed on leave for fighting while responding to an emergency call, authorities say.
Video posted to social media shows workers in uniform throwing punches. The clash occurred Tuesday night, the department said.
According to a D.C. police report, and multiple public safety sources, D.C. Fire and EMS Engine 6 and a medic unit were called to a crash near Florida Avenue and North Captiol Street Tuesday night. As the first responders were assessing the patients, one man threw a punch at the fire lieutenant in charge, according to the report and the sources.
The other firefighters then punched the man. At one point, a firefighter is seen kicking the man on the ground.
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“The actions depicted in a video of the incident are completely unacceptable and do not reflect the behavior we require of our members,” DC Fire and EMS said in a statement Wednesday night.
David Hoagland, president of the D.C. firefighters union Local 36, said the firefighters were coming to the defense of the lieutenant.
“I think they were trying to help their lieutenant who had been assaulted. You know, our members are routinely placed in some of these unsafe situations from day to day and, unfortunately, on the scenes of these emergencies they can escalate quickly before the police have a chance to arrive to assist us," Hoagland said.
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D.C. police arrested the man who allegedly threw the punch and charged him with assault on a police officer. The U.S. Attorney's Office later dropped the charge.
“I would just encourage people not to rush to judgement. You know, we just don’t know all the facts of this case yet and we really need to do some deeper investigation and just, just remember that, you know, our guys were out there just trying to do their job and they … encountered violence," Hoagland said.
The six workers were placed on administrative leave during a joint investigation with D.C. police, the fire department said.
Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.
