Three days after returning back to work after taking time off to recover from a stroke, the 23-year veteran of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service for whom the HERO Act is named after, died.
Master Firefighter Christopher Higgins, 46, was hospitalized on Oct. 19, 2024 after experiencing a stroke. He utilized his job’s shift substitution policy to take time off, rather than medical leave, according to the Line of Death Duty Report released March 4 by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
Higgins, who was assigned to the Burtonsville Volunteer Fire Department, reported back to work Jan 8, 2025. Then, on Jan. 11, 2025–his second shift since returning to work–Higgins worked at a single-family home fire in Laurel as part of Montgomery County’s mutual aid agreement…