We are pleased to announce the newest honorees in our 2014 Firehouse Magazine Heroism Awards program. All displayed great bravery in the face of dangerous conditions.
We would like to thank the judges: Deputy Chief William Goldfeder of the Loveland-Symmes, OH, Fire Department; Deputy Chief John B. Tippett, Jr. of the Charleston, SC, Fire Department; Assistant Chief Brian Fennessy of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department; and Assistant Chief Brian Schaeffer of the Spokane, WA, Fire Department. We also thank retired FDNY Rescue 1 Firefighter Paul Hashagen, who administers the program.
#11: Firefighters Frank Carter, Licole McKinney & Vincent Smith
St. Louis Fire Department, Truck 20-C & Truck 33-C
On Dec. 20, 2014, Firefighters Carter, McKinney and Smith were each headed to work when they came across a single-vehicle accident with three passengers trapped and the engine compartment ignited in flames. Carter and Smith got the assistance of several bystanders to call 9-1-1 and look for bricks or tire irons to break windows, as the doors were either locked or too damaged to open. Once able to access the vehicle through the backseat, Carter removed an unconscious male victim from the backseat and placed him on the street. Carter and Smith entered the backseat to begin extricating a female passenger who was unconscious. When a bystander was able to break the driver’s side window, McKinney was able to pull the male driver out of the vehicle. He was unconscious and his clothes were on fire. McKinney patted out the fire with her hands and clothing and left the patient, who had a pulse and agonal respirations, with a bystander who was a nurse. The female passenger’s leg was trapped in the floorboard area, and when the flames intensified in this area, she awoke and was able to free her ankle. Carter and Smith then pulled her out of the vehicle. Her hair and clothes were on fire, and Smith patted the fire out with his hands as Carter and McKinney pulled her to safety. Additional units soon arrived on scene and were able to extinguish the fire and render medical care to the victims. While the victims were severely injured, their lives were saved by the courageous actions of Carter, McKinney and Smith, who went above and beyond their call of duty.
#12: Captain Brad Hawthorne & Engine Operator Dwayne Wyble
Houston Fire Department
On March 25, 2014, Ladder 18 responded to a fire in a five-story building. The first-arriving chief stated that there were reports of people still on the upper floors or the roof, and requested that Ladder 18 make their way to the north side of the building. Smoke quickly turned to rapidly moving fire. While putting a ladder to the roof, the crew—Captain Hawthorne, Firefighters Luis Bernal and Luis Gonzalez and Engineer Operator Wyble—spotted someone on a fifth-floor balcony. Hawthorne was on the tip of the ladder, Wyble motioned to him to the corner where the trapped person was located. Wyble moved the ladder to the victim with the captain and two firefighters still on the ladder. The fire was venting through the doors as the trapped construction worker swung himself down to a fourth-floor patio. The ladder reached the fourth floor, and the captain made his way to the tip as the construction worker made his way onto the ladder. Wyble then quickly moved the ladder away from the building due to the extreme heat. Within seconds, the roof and fifth floor suffered a catastrophic collapse, sending burning debris onto the fourth floor of the building. The collapse just missed the captain and victim. Once they were a safe distance from the building, Hawthorne and the victim were able to exit the ladder. Without the training and confidence of the crew, this rescue could not have been performed as proficiently as it was.
#13: Captain Mario Montero & Firefighter Thomas Moore
St. Louis Fire Department, Rescue Squad 1-B
On Dec. 8, 2014, the St. Louis Fire Department was called to an incident involving a “jumper” on the Eads Bridge. The jumper was atop a high-tension, high-voltage power line tower stretching approximately 130–150 feet above the Mississippi River. Captain Montero and Firefighter Moore proceeded to the lower portion of the tower near a flood wall. A ground ladder was placed on the flood wall to gain access, and Montero and Moore began to ascend the tower. Upon reaching the top, Montero found a 21-year-old female who was distraught and did not want anyone near her. Through use of a cell phone, Montero conveyed messages from a negotiator on the ground. The female was eventually coaxed to a safer location on the tower and, after several more hours of negotiation, even began descending the tower wearing safety equipment that she insisted on donning herself so that no one would touch her. Halfway down, the female became agitated and began to ascend the tower again. After further dialogue with her, the female descended the tower and was transferred to the care of EMS. Without the combined efforts of all involved, this incident may have had a tragic ending.
