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by MICHELE McPHEE
FDNY brass are investigating five firefighters' claims of injury while fighting a fatal blaze in Brooklyn Friday night - a move that union officials are calling politically motivated.
The Ladder 102 firefighters said they suffered minor injuries while battling a raging fire that ripped through a sixth-floor apartment in the Taylor Wythe Houses, killing four people.
FDNY Chief of Department Frank Cruthers launched a probe this week to make sure the five firefighters were really hurt.
Uniformed Firefighters Association President Stephen Cassidy called the move retaliation for his own charge that the closing of two firehouses in Brooklyn contributed to a slower response time, possibly contributing to the family's deaths.
The injured firefighters are out on sick leave but have been threatened by Cruthers that they will be placed on light duty - and removed from the firehouse - if they do not return to work immediately.
"He [Cruthers] is questioning their integrity, and questioning whether they were actually injured," Cassidy said. "It's petty. It's harassment. It violates our collective bargaining agreement and I won't tolerate it."
FDNY officials insisted that the department is obligated to investigate the firefighters' injury claims.
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