ALBERT LEA, Minn.- Cancer is hitting home for the Albert Lea Fire Department as their Chief Deputy Jeff Laskowske was recently diagnosed with it.
Laskowske joined the Albert Lea Fire Department January of 2015 and as of July 5th he’s been on medical leave.
The firefighters are stepping up and finding themselves in different roles to make sure the station is still running smoothly.
Field Training Officer, Kurt Wallace, got bumped up to Acting Lieutenant for the time being. He says it’s amazing to see these guys come together to help a fellow firefighter.
Laskowske’s role this past year has helped make it easier for them to make the transition.
“He’s kind of changed the department with how he’s brought a new perspective in,” said Wallace. “He kind of kept us up with our training and that allowed us to do all this and make the changes that we’ve need to make through the training that we’ve done.”
This isn’t the first time the department has had to make changes because of cancer.
“Unfortunately this is the third time we’ve dealt with this just this year so we’ve kind of had a little bit of an understanding with it,” said Wallace. “It brings awareness to the department as far as cancer and we’re just kind of prepared.”
Laskowske is expected to be at work on Monday, but he will be on limited duty.