Chapel Hill Firefighters Receive Award for Commitment

That same determination applies when one of their fellow firefighters is hurt.

The Chapel Hill Firefighters Association, IAFF Local 2580, was recognized for its commitment and generosity last week in Charlotte at the International Association of Firefighters Annual Convention.

The Professional Firefighters and Paramedics of North Carolina presented them with the Local of the Year Award.

Local 2580, a union that 62 out of 72 Chapel Hill Fire Department firefighters belong to, received this award for the generous support it gave the family of Josh Early.

Early, a Charlotte and Harrisburg firefighter and a member of the Charlotte union, was responding to a call in March when he entered a building and the floor collapsed, causing him to fall to the basement where the fire had started. He was pulled out of the fire but suffered from severe burns, so he was transported by helicopter to the Jaycee Burn Center at UNC Hospitals.

Early later died from the injuries he sustained in the accident.

Local 2580 became involved when the president of the Charlotte IFFA, Mike Spath, called Chapel Hill Fire Chief Dan Jones, who contacted Local 2580.

"At that point, they just took over," Spath said. "There was a lot of chaos down here, and they took care of all the needs we had."

Those needs included everything from parking passes and snacks to hotel rooms and counseling.

"We tried to take care of things so they wouldn't have to," said Local 2580 Vice President Barry McLamb.

Spath said the Charlotte IFFA greatly appreciated the Chapel Hill firefighters' contributions.

"It's a network of brotherhood," Spath said. "The family was overwhelmed. They had no idea this mechanism would kick in."

The response was generated from an organization that has been inactive for many years since its beginning in 1975. Only recently has it become active again. "This past July was one year," McLamb said.

This is the first time Local 2580 has received an award like this. McLamb said, "We're very honored."

The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu.