Harvey firefighter furloughed hours before welcoming newborn daughter

Harvey firefighter furloughed hours before welcoming newborn daughter

A Harvey firefighter faced one of his toughest and best days all at once — becoming a first-time father, but not before he was furloughed from the Harvey Fire Department.

CHICAGO - A Harvey firefighter faced one of his toughest and best days all at once — becoming a first-time father, but not before he was furloughed from the Harvey Fire Department.

Earlier this week, 69 employees, including firefighters and police officers, were furloughed as Harvey officials scramble to fix the city's finances. Mayor Christopher Clark said the city is "buried in debt" after "years of financial mismanagement, corruption, and neglect by past administrations."

One of the firefighters, who is now out of work and just welcomed a newborn, is sharing his story.

What we know:

Daniel Raygoza and his wife, Lisette, welcomed a baby girl, Gracie Rose, at Elmhurst Hospital on Tuesday — less than 24 hours after Raygoza learned he was being furloughed.

"We risk our lives every day for the people of Harvey and just to know that they can just pretty much let us go at any second is kind of gut-wrenching," Raygoza said. 

Down the road, Gracie will hear about the day she was born — one that brought high highs and low lows for her dad, a local first responder. 

Raygoza has been with the Harvey Fire Department for just over a year. He is one of 17 firefighters temporarily let go while the city works to stabilize its finances.

He was notified about the situation on Monday, and it became official Tuesday morning.  

"It was like pulling the carpet underneath my feet," Raygoza expressed. 

But it wasn't the only life-changing news that was delivered. 

"My little girl came into the world," Raygoza said. 

Hours after being notified that he was out of work, Raygoza's wife, Lisette, went into labor. 

Gracie and Lisette are doing great, Raygoza told FOX 32 on Friday. The Berwyn couple has been through a whirlwind of emotions this week, and they won't be the last. 

"I'm not the only one that's having a kid. There's another fireman within the next two to three weeks that's going to be in the same situation that I'm in," Raygoza said. 

Meanwhile, a representative for the firefighters' union — Harvey Firemen's Association (I.A.F.F.) Local 471 — launched a GoFundMe account to help support furloughed Harvey firefighters like Raygoza. It has already raised more than $38,000.

"I want to say 'thank you' to the community first off and thank you to anybody who donated. Time is tough and everything is so expensive, so for someone to just put anywhere from a dollar to $50, it just means a lot to me, and not just me, to my family and everybody else's family who's affected by this," Raygoza said. 

Raygoza says it remains unclear if and when he and others will be asked to return to work.

"Nobody knows, nobody has any answers," Raygoza explained. 

Still, Raygoza says he is counting his blessings.

"The only thing that made me excited is welcoming my little baby girl into the world," he shared. 

What's next:

FOX 32 Chicago has reached out to the Harvey fire chief for more details on the situation but has not yet heard back.

Across all city departments, the furloughs affected 40% of Harvey’s workforce.