Two firefighters from Marion County, Florida, committed suicide in January over a period of three weeks.

Marion County Fire and Rescue Chief James Banta said on Tuesday that fire paramedics Allen Singleton and Tripp Wooten committed suicide on January 28 and January 9 respectively. He added that the department is “in pain, confused and upset” over the sudden loss, in an emotional message on social media.

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Banta said that he has spoken to the family members of the firefighters. Adding that he is aware of a number of issues affecting them, such as low pay, workload, mandatory overtime, lack of sleep addiction, and PTSD, he said that those issues will also be looked into.

Who are Allen Singleton and Tripp Wooten?

Allen Singleton and Tripp Wooten were firefighter-paramedics with the Marion County Fire and Rescue, in Marion County, Florida.

Singleton had worked for the department for six years. He attended the 2016 Marion County Fire Rescue Non-Certified Recruit Academy before being hired on September 12, 2016. He was a two-time Golden Axe winner in the department’s physical competitions and was a proud member of the MCFR/MCSO SWAT Medic team.

Wooten was employed by the division in December 2006. He “spent many years as a member of the ‘Hames Road Hooligans’ at Belleview Station 18″ and was a member of the MCFR Career Academy Class of 2006.” He was characterized in the article as an “amazingly gifted” fireman and paramedic with a sense of humor that made everyone around him smile. He allegedly never encountered a stranger.

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In his message, Chief Banta further said to the members of the department, “I need each of you to be my eyes and ears. I shoulder the burden of leading us out of this crisis, but I cannot do it alone.”

“If the answer was as simple as eliminating mandatory overtime, I would shut trucks down immediately, but I can tell you that it goes way deeper than that,” he continued.

The International Association of Firefighters’ mental health strike teams, he said, will arrive after Singleton’s funeral on Saturday and offer recommendations that would be carried out.