It is with a heavy heart that we offer our sincerest condolences to the family, friends and loved ones of Firefighter Christopher Slutman Ladder 27, a fifteen year member of the department and a friend to all in both of his firehouses.
Christopher will be greatly missed. RIP pic. About once a month, Christopher A. Slutman, a New York City firefighter, exchanged his regular department uniform for the fatigues of the United States Marine Corps reserves. Usually, being a firefighter took precedence. But last summer, according to his father, Firefighter Slutman began traveling overseas to train for deployment in Afghanistan. He arrived there in the fall. He was scheduled to return home to his wife and three children by the end of April, his father, Fletcher Slutman, said in an interview on Tuesday.
Instead, on Monday at about p. Slutman shook his head no. The Marine shook his head yes. Slutman was told that his son was one of three Marines killed on Monday in Afghanistan when a roadside bomb exploded near their military convoy. An Afghan contractor and several civilians were injured. The death of Firefighter Slutman, 43, highlighted a tradition of firefighters serving dual roles in the military. Currently, 73 New York Fire Department personnel are on extended military orders in branches of the United States Armed Forces, serving around the world.
The department said 1, of its members are military reservists or veterans. His friends said they knew other firefighters who, like Mr. Slutman, felt the need to serve more, particularly after Sept. Slutman as a volunteer firefighter in Maryland and rented a beach house with him in Delaware for years. Firefighter Slutman stayed in New York when he had his shifts, and returned to his family during his off days, according to his father.
Oleg Pelekhaty, a chief of the Kentland Volunteer Fire Department , said in a statement that Firefigher Slutman had joined his department in February and had risen to the rank of captain. Slutman said his son joined the reserves about 14 years ago, and had deployed to Afghanistan last fall after having been deployed in Iraq about five years ago. Firefighter Slutman, who was a staff sergeant in a Marines reserve unit based in Harrisburg, Pa. Firefighter Christian P. Engeldrum of Ladder 61 in the Bronx was killed in November of ; Lt.
