Chris Cuomo had short-lived aspirations of extinguishing real life infernos — not just the media fire faced by his disgraced brother, ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, according to a new report.
The ex-CNN host applied to be a volunteer firefighter with the East Hampton Fire Department after the network fired him last December for advising his brother throughout the governor’s sexual harassment scandal, the Daily Beast reported Monday.
But the former primetime news anchor ultimately withdrew his application a short time after meeting with fire chiefs earlier this year as he was unable to devote enough of his time to fulfill the role, according to the outlet, which cited two sources familiar with the situation.
Cuomo — who at first seemed eager to join the fully-volunteer-led fire house — soon “balked” at the time commitment, the sources told the Daily Beast.
“It’s a very time-consuming thing. There are monthly meetings and drills and you have to meet a percentage of your calls,” EHFD Chief Duane Forrester said to the outlet. “That’s why we don’t have many celebrities.”
In March, Cuomo filed a lawsuit demanding a staggering $125 million damages from CNN for being fired.
He was canned after CNN learned that he used his press connections and experience to aid the defense of his embattled older brother, then the governor of New York.
An investigation by State Attorney General Letitia James found that Cuomo helped his brother’s staff pry into the past of a woman who accused the ex-governor of inappropriately touching her
Cuomo then participated in strategy sessions aimed at helping the his brother beat the sexual harassment scandal that eventually forced him to resign, according to the probe.
However, Cuomo stoked the fire when he called his termination “the epitome of hypocrisy” due to the network’s alleged willingness to look the other way when other CNN personalities reportedly violated its journalistic standards.
The ousted cable news anchor has recently set headlines ablaze as he ended a seven-month hiatus from Instagram to post dispatches from war-torn Ukraine, tease an upcoming project, market a “Free Agent” merch line and share pics of himself fishing with his hero-to-zero brother Andrew Cuomo.