After the Explosion

Local 129 shares how Wilmington firefighters are healing and how the community has rallied to support them

By Vera Wilson

On August 19, 2025, tragedy struck just weeks before the planned grand opening of the Eastern Carolina Veterinary Medical Center in Wilmington. A car crashed into the building, rupturing a gas line and triggering two explosions that leveled the facility, injured several firefighters, and shook the community. While the veterinary staff remain hopeful the hospital will be rebuilt and reopen by late 2026 or early 2027, attention has also turned to the first responders who risked their lives that day.

Below are the highlights of an interview with Jordan Pettid, president of the Wilmington Professional Firefighters Association (Local 129), a nonprofit dedicated to advocating for the health and safety of Wilmington firefighters and engaging in community outreach. The organization has been instrumental in supporting the firefighters injured in the explosion. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Q: First and foremost on everyone’s mind — how are the five firefighters who were injured during the explosion recuperating?

A:  They’re doing well. We just had the one who was in Chapel Hill, in the burn unit for injuries primarily to his hands, return home after a couple of weeks. He’s doing therapy, and his hands are healing much quicker than expected.

Q:  Are any of them back at work?

A:  The other four only missed a few days of work. It was the last day of their tour [shift], so they were about to get four days off anyway when the explosion happened. Most only had a couple more days off after that.

The firefighter who sustained the burns will probably be out for eight months to a year. They want to make sure he’s 100% before he does anything — just carrying the gear can be tough.

Q: But it sounds like they expect him to make a full recovery?

A:  Yeah, that’s what we’re hearing right now.

Q: What resources are being provided to help them through the recovery process?

A:  As far as the city’s benefit package, it allows for six mental health visits at no cost, but after that, they have to pay. So Local 129 is providing access to a therapist for members and their families for free. I don’t know if any of them have used that because it’s confidential, of course.

It’s kind of a tag team with the fire department. If we hear of anyone needing something specific, we know enough people in the community to try making the contacts to get them in touch with what they need. There are also state programs, which are free to members.

Q:  Local 129 is basically a union, right?

A:  Yes. It’s a choice to join since we’re a right-to-work state, and we don’t have collective bargaining rights. Right now, we represent roughly 75% of the fire department.

Q: What do you do for your members?

A:  When people join, they get access to a lot of benefits like the free counseling. Local 129 is part of the International Association of Fire Fighters, so members have access to state, national and international resources.

Our main goal is always the health, safety and well-being of the firefighters in the Wilmington Fire Department. We advocate for anything we think would benefit our members. We bring up the issues, discuss them, and push those issues or at least bring them to light.

We hold get-togethers for our members. We also hold charity events for other nonprofits and can provide support to firefighters anywhere. We were the first to send money to Asheville when Helene happened.

Q: Were all the firefighters involved the day of the explosion members?

A:  No, not all of them, but Local 129 decided we were going to help everyone who was involved. We know some people just don’t have enough money at the end of their paycheck to pay dues to be in the local.

Q:  Donations were made to help the firefighters, and money was collected through fundraisers. How much was raised, and what were you able to do with it?

A:  So far, over $30,000 has been raised. All the funds will go to help the firefighters. It’s been used for a little bit of everything.

We facilitated getting a hotel in Chapel Hill for the firefighter’s family. Even though the incident was on shift and covered by workers’ compensation, a lot of them work overtime, so now they’re missing out on a significant amount of money coming into their household. We’re giving them gift cards or debit cards, so they can use them for whatever they need.

Q: How is your organization’s relationship with the fire department?

A:  It’s good. We can call any of the chiefs, and they answer. We know, on a day-to-day basis, what our members are saying or wanting, and they like our input. We bounce ideas off each other and help each other.

Q: Anything else you’d like to add?

A:  I think the biggest thing is to just let the general public know that something like the Aug. 19 incident could happen again in a couple hours, or it could be 20 years from now. But we deal with the possibility on a daily basis, whether it’s gas leaks or fires or anything in between.

So once the news story moves on, we don’t want everyone to forget that these men and women are putting their lives on the line every day.

To support Local 129, you can donate through their Venmo account, @Local129, or at www.pffpnc.org/pffpnc-charitable-fund. (If you want the donation to go specifically to the firefighters injured in the explosion, please indicate that.)