MESSY BRAVEST
L.I. beach town gives boot to FDNY game
A Long Island town just spiked a longstanding FDNY volleyball game over firefighters' appalling lack of beach etiquette.
Bravest members participating in the annual event on June 13 took it upon themselves to erect a temporary tiki bar on the public sands of Long Beach — complete with a rustic outhouse.
When the firefighters packed up at the end of the day, they took everything home but their mess, multiple sources told the Daily News.
“They left the hole uncovered, full of waste,” one disgusted source said.
Officials from Long Beach were so incensed by the vile pile, they notified FDNY officials to let them know the volleyball event would not be welcome back next year.
FDNY brass were left redfaced and furious after getting the news.
“It just reflects badly on the whole department,” another source said. “They really wrecked the beach.”
The firefighters didn't have permission to dig deep holes, or turn the beach into a bathroom, the sources said.
Department big wigs respect the town's right to issue permits or allow events as they see fit, a source explained, adding that there is no internal investigation likely because it was fraternal outing not sponsored by the FDNY.
The volleyball tournament —a fund-raiser for firefighters in need — has been an annual affair for roughly two decades.
Six years ago it was renamed the Firefighter Billy Quick Tournament, in honor of its main organizer and biggest booster. Quick, a member of the Bravest who survived 9/11, died at age 55 in 2011 from lung disease related to his time at Ground Zero.
“The department received a call from the town of Long Beach notifying us that they spoke with the organizers and saying they are not going to host the event next year,” FDNY spokesman Jim Long told the News.
The boot from Long Beach is just the latest black eye for the FDNY, which made headlines a few weeks ago when a brawl broke out among its members after its Medal Day ceremony.
Eight firefighters were suspended after they were captured on video shoving each other and a cop outside a Bronx bar where they had been partying all afternoon.