Firehouse Magazine Rescue Award Winners for 2000
These winners were recognized in the April, 2001 Issue of Firehouse Magazine.
Return to 1997 Directory of Winners | Return to Home Page | Return to Hall of Heroes Page
|1998 Directory of Winners| 1999 Directory of Winners |Table of Contents Page |
| 2000 Directory of Winners | 2001 Directory of Winners
Switch to the Firehouse Magazine Web Site: http://www.Firehouse.com
Go to the directory for: Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 |Page 5 | Page 6
Page 1
| Alphonse Dellert | Austin, TX FD | Lee Little | St. Louis, MO FD | James H. Pfister Jr. | San Diego, CA FD |
| Robert W. Crump | Denver, CO FD | Ronald E. Schreiber | Baltimore County, MD FD | Roy Burgess | San Diego, CA FD |
| Sean E. Sandifer | Montgomery County, MD Fire Rescue | Charlie Williams | District of Columbia FD | Timothy A. Newman | Milwaukee, WI FD |
| Adam Alberti | Roxbury Chemical Engine Co. 1, Succasunna, NJ | Daniel Bolline | Miami-Dade Fire Rescue | David T. Allen | Columbus, OH FD |
| Paul C. Walker | Memphis, TN FD | Darryl Sanford | California Dept of Forestry | Michael P. Brown | FDNY |
| Danny E. Gomez | Seattle, WA FD | Allen R. Cunningham | Parma, OH FD | Christopher Ashby | Miami-Dade Fire Rescue |
| Rick Snow | St. Louis, MO FD | Travis K. Fry | Tulsa, OK FD | Jeffrey Blair | Columbus, OH FD |
| Thomas J. Brady | FDNY |
 |
On January 5, 2000,
Engine 22 was dispatched to an apartment complex to a possible fire.
Captain John Butz arrived with his truck company. Butz and a firefighter
reached the second-floor landing, and Butz ordered the firefighter to
bring additional equipment. Butz donned his breathing apparatus and
entered the second-floor fire apartment to make a search. Conditions
deteriorated rapidly as Butz continued his search. At this point a bedroom
in the apartment flashed over. Firefighter Alphonse Dellert was directly
beneath the fire apartment's window/balcony area. He heard screaming from
inside the fire apartment. As he looked up, he saw flames roiling from the
bedroom window.
He grabbed a 1 ¾ inch hose and knocked down the fire in the window. Carrying the hose, he climbed a ladder to the bedroom. Again he darkened the flames in the bedroom ceiling area. Looking in, he saw the beam of a flashlight. Dellert climbed in the window and found Butz lying face down next to a bed only a few feet from the window. Another firefighter heard screaming in the apartment and went up the ladder to investigate. Dellert lifted Butz from the floor, and they began moving toward the window. Dellert helped Butz out the window into the hands of another firefighter. Deteriorating conditions forced both men to leave in extreme haste. Butz tumbled to the ground, although the other firefighter managed to break his fall. Dellert jumped from the second-floor window. Captain John Butz received second- and third-degree burns to 53% of his body, mostly his extremities. He was hospitalized and airlifted to a burn center. Firefighter Dellert was hospitalized with second- and third-degree burns to his forearms, neck and ear. |
|
Alphonse Dellert, Austin TX FD $3,000 Award |
 |
On
Aug. 17; 2000, at 3:07-P.M., a torrential rainstorm caused flash flooding
throughout the Denver metropolitan area. Denver firefighters were
dispatched to rescue motorists and to assist with diverting traffic from
flooding areas to prevent additional vehicles from becoming trapped in
high water. Squirt 10 was dispatched to 48th and Colorado Boulevard, a
major thoroughfare in the northeast quadrant of Denver, when Firefighter
First Grade Robert W. Crump arid Firefighter Second Grade Will Roberts
were assigned to prevent traffic from veering into deep water at the
intersection.
While they were doing this, a pedestrian became trapped in the swirling water just outside a culvert. The civilian was holding on for her life when Crump and Roberts went to her rescue. They rescued the woman, but Crump was swept into the swirling water into the culvert. The force of the water carried him through the storm sewer system. His body was found later. Firefighter Robert W. Crump demonstrated his commitment to the fire service and the citizens of Denver by sacrificing his life to save another. |
Robert W. Crump Denver, CO FD $1,500 Award |
 |
On
April 1, 2000 at 2:41 A.M., Engine 121 responded on mutual aid to Prince
George's County to assist at a house fire. The crew was directed to advance a
hose line to side 3 of the structure. There was heavy smoke and fire throughout
the house. The crew of Engine 121 entered the basement to attack the fire.
Command then broadcast that several firefighters had been burned and that one
was missing. Firefighter Sean E. Sandifer heard a PASS device sounding in the
"distress" mode. He determined that the device was sounding from
within the house. Without hesitation, and without the protection of a hose line,
Sandifer placed a ladder to the bedroom window on side 3, from which he heard
the PASS alarm. He broke the window. Climbing to the top of the ladder, Sandifer
pushed a bunk bed from the window opening. He saw a firefighter struggling for
air. The firefighter was too exhausted to escape and the room was heavily
involved in fire. Sandifer moved the firefighter to the window opening and
climbed over him onto the ladder. He reached inside the window to grab the
downed firefighter and began to hoist him onto his shoulder. As he grabbed the
firefighter, he lost his grip on the ladder and both firefighters fell 14 feet
to the ground. Although bruised, both men were relatively unharmed. After
delivering the rescued firefighter to EMS, Sandifer rejoined his crew and
extinguished the fire
|
Sean E. Sandifer Montgomery County, MD Fire rescue $1,000 Award |
 |
On
Feb. 25, 2000, at 11:47 A.m., Roxbury Co. 1 volunteers were dispatched to a
fire with a report of people trapped. Captain Adam Alberti responded from
his home.
He observed heavy fire and smoke venting from two second-floor windows. A large crowd of onlookers in the front yard screamed that children were trapped on the second floor. Alberti donned his gear and entered the first floor, where he met Fire Chief Lou Moore, who had attempted to reach the second floor from the interior stairwell, but had been hindered by heavy smoke and heat. Alberti donned his SCBA and climbed the stairs to the second floor. He proceeded straight into the children's bedroom. Heavy black smoke was already banked down inches from the floor. He could see fire at the top of the stairs to the right as well as behind him. Crawling into the room, he found a crib. Despite the intensive heat, Alberti stood up, retrieved a small child from the crib and left the room, trying to shield the child from the heat. He returned to the interior stairwell where he handed the baby to Chief Moore. Moore handed the baby to Fire Official Mike Pellek, who took the child outside where CPR was initiated. Alberti returned to the children's room. Not finding another victim, he returned to the stairwell, where he was advised that a second victim had been removed from a crib in a neighboring room. He left the building as the first line was being stretched. After he collapsed from exhaustion, he was transported to a local hospital. Despite his efforts, the 14-month-old victim died of smoke inhalation four days later. |
Adam Alberti Roxbury Chemical Engine Co. 1, Succasunna, NJ Alfred E. Ronaldson Medal of Valor $2,000 |
 |
On
March 8, 2000, Engines 55 and 52 Truck 26 and Battalion Chief 13
were dispatched to a house fire. As Engine 55 Lieutenant Javier Lerma left
the pumper to make a size-up, a man with a 12-gauge shotgun gunned him
down next to the pumper. The man then fired several shots at the
apparatus, mortally wounding Firefighter William Blakemore. Prior to the
fire department's arrival, a woman reporting gunshots and a house fire had
flagged down a Shelby County sheriff's deputy. The assailant shot and
killed the deputy and wounded the woman. Engine 52 arrived seconds behind
Engine 55. The lieutenant and two firefighters, one of whom was Paul C.
Walker, were making their way toward the structure when they saw Lerma in
the street. They went to check him and found that he had been shot in the
head. The third firefighter from Engine 55 said they were being shot at
and advised that the shooter was-heading toward them. The three men from
Engine 52 moved Lerma to a location they thought would be out of imminent
danger. Truck 26 arrived on the scene and began a futile attempt to save
Blakemore, who was still inside 55's pumper. The shooter returned to the
area and began to pursue the lieutenant and one firefighter from 52's
pumper. Walker remained at Lerma's side. When the shooter came to Walker
and Lerma, he lowered the weapon at them. Walker covered Lerma's body with
his own and attempted turn away the shooter. The shooter took aim at
Walker and pulled the trigger. The weapon jammed. The shooter was then
shot down by police and sheriffs deputies.
|
Paul C. Walker Memphis, TN FD $1,000 Award |
 |
On April 22, 2000, off-duty Firefighter Danny E. Gomez of Ladder 4 was traveling with his family when he came upon a single vehicle/telephone pole accident. An 18-year-old man had run off the road into the pole at a speed between 50 and 60 mph. Upon impact, the vehicle caught fire. With flames encroaching on the trapped man, Gomez approached the vehicle and extinguished most of the fire with his personal fire extinguisher. He then climbed into the heavily damaged vehicle to begin emergency medical treatment to the unconscious patient, who was burned and trapped under the displaced engine. With the fire extinguisher spent, the fuel tank ignited at the rear of the car. The fire grew, involving the car and around and over Gomez and the patient until flames surrounded them. While his family looked on, civilians and law enforcement personnel on the scene backed away in fear of their lives. With the now-conscious patient still pinned beneath the engine, Gomez maintained his airway and calmly reassured him as he heard sirens of approaching units from the City of Bothell Fire Department. Upon arrival of the first engine, the fire was extinguished and Gomez was relieved by on-duty firefighters who began extrication. It took rescue crews an hour to free the trapped and badly injured man.
|
Danny E. Gomez Seattle, WA FD $500 Award |
 |
 |
Lee Little $500 Award |
Rick Snow $500 Award |
| St. Louis, MO FD |
|
At 9:28 on the morning of March 15, 2000, firefighters were dispatched to a two-story residence at 7710 Alabama. A frantic mother reported to arriving firefighters that her children, a 3-month-old and a 3-year old, were trapped on the second floor. Captain Rick Snow and Firefighter Lee Little charged inside to search for the children.
|
Snow was forced to leave the structure when his turnout coat ignited from the intense heat of the fire. Little searched on until finally locating the body of the 3-year-old, who was carried to safety and a waiting medic unit. The 3-month-old child did not survive the fire. |
 |
On
Oct. 11, 1999, at 7:41 A.M., Baltimore County FD was dispatched to a
dwelling fire. First-due Engine 6 found a group of two-story row houses
with light smoke showing from the first-floor rear. A neighbor told
firefighters that the family was possibly still inside and pointed to the
second floor rear bedroom. Two firefighters entered the house and went
directly to the second floor for a primary search. After they reached the
rear bedroom, the fire below rapidly accelerated and engulfed the first
floor, trapping the two firefighters. They reached the bedroom window, but
had difficulty escaping. Fire was blowing out a window directly below
them, preventing placement of a ground ladder for rescue. The Engine 6
pump operator saw the two firefighters trapped and threw a 14 foot roof
ladder to a porch roof several feet from them. Truck 15 arrived and
Firefighter Ronald E. Schreiber, seeing the trapped firefighters, ascended
the ladder to the porch roof and stretched himself out to the window ledge
to grab one firefighter. After pulling him to safety, Schreiber attempted
to pull the second firefighter out, but he became stuck in the window.
Schreiber broke out the window sash with a maul and pulled the second
firefighter to safety. He then rejoined his crew and helped rescue three
occupants from the second floor.
|
Ronald E. Schreiber Baltimore County, MD FD $500 Award |
 |
On
April 8, 2000, at 11:10 P.M., Engine 259 responded to a fire in a multiple
dwelling with a report of a woman trapped. Visible fire was venting from
two windows on the third floor. The size and shape of the structure
required a stretch and placement of 12 lengths of hose (600 feet) for the
first line. Upon arrival at the third floor, Lieutenant Thomas J. Brady
found high heat and heavy black smoke, and visibility in the hallway was
zero. Brady left Captain Ryan, with whom he had come up to the third
floor, to direct the hoseline. Brady, with no truck company on the scene
yet, made his way down the 50-foot-long public hallway. He was hit with a
tremendous blast of heat as he entered the apartment and closed the door
behind him. Crawling on his stomach, he searched the apartment hallway and
was turned back by heat and flames of a fully involved bedroom. He called
out and heard a muffled sound coming from the living room. He continued
his search until he found an unconscious obese woman lying in a hospital
bed. He could only kneel to try and roll the victim from the bed. With the
fire now extending into the bedroom, conditions were becoming untenable.
Brady struggled through the tight apartment through unbearable heat, zero visibility and the weight of the victim. He dragged her inch by inch. His vibra-alert (low air) started to sound as he approached the apartment door. He was met by a member of Ladder 128 and together they dragged the victim toward the apartment door. The engine company arrived and was ordered to back out to facilitate the removal of the 350 pound victim. She was hospitalized for three weeks and recovered from her injuries. |
Thomas J. Brady FDNY $250 Award |
 |
On
Feb. 27, 2000, at 1:44 A.M., Engine 25 was dispatched first due to a house
fire with people reported trapped. Engine 25 saw heavy smoke billowing
from a second-floor window. As the attack line was about to be charged, a
woman was seen in the window. Firefighter Charlie Williams was on his way
into the structure when another firefighter told him a rescue was needed.
The woman had disappeared back into the extremely hostile atmosphere. The
crew placed a 24-foot ladder on to the front porch roof directly in front
of the window. Williams climbed the ladder and entered the window. He
quickly located the woman, who was semi-conscious and unable to help
herself out of the room. Williams saw she was elderly and obese. He was
working alone, without the protection of a charged line, above a fire that
was running unchecked through the walls of a balloon-frame house. Despite
rapidly deteriorating conditions, he lifted the victim and moved her
through the window and out onto the porch roof. Now assisted by other
firefighters, Williams got the victim to the ground.
|
Charlie Williams District of Columbia FD $500 Award |
 |
On
Jan. 3, 2000, at 2:55 A.M., while responding to a call, Firefighter Daniel
Bolline sensed that the patient, a man over six feet tall and weighing
more than 300 pounds, was not behaving normally. The man followed a police
officer out of the room, grabbed her and reached for her gun. Bolline
grabbed the patient and pulled him off the officer. Bolline and the
patient fell to the ground. The family's 90 pound Rotweiler attacked
Bolline and bit him on the calf. Bolline freed himself of the dog while
maintaining his hold on the patient. The officer kept her weapon and
called for backup officers, who took the man into custody.
|
Daniel Bolline Miami-Dade Fire Rescue $250 Award |
 |
On
the morning of Sept. 20, 2000, Captain Darryl Sanford with Butte County
Engine 71 was performing structure protection on the Concow fire. While
trying to evacuate a woman from her home on Stagecoach Lane, Sanford and
she were forced back into the residence by an intense firestorm that hit
the house from three different directions. Sanford moved the
woman into the back bedroom as the fire spread into the house. He struggled to get the overcome victim through a small, high bedroom window. As the fire began to flash over the bedroom ceiling, Sanford had to jump for his life out the window. He suffered second-degree burns on his hands, back and face. Despite his heroic efforts, the resident died in the fire.
|
Darryl Sanford California Dept. of Forestry & Fire Protection / Butte County Fire Rescue $250 Award |
 |
On
Feb. 24, 2000, at 6:06 A.M., Off duty Fire Medic Allen R. Cunningham was
awakened by a next door neighbor who shouted that her house was on fire.
While Cunningham dressed, his wife called 911. He saw flames coming from the
first-floor bedroom. As he grabbed a garden hose, he heard sirens. A
neighbor had broken the window to see if the occupant was inside and now the
fire was lapping at the second floor window.
Cunningham climbed atop a central air conditioning unit and looked into a window. Because the room was vented, he was able to see the victim lying on the floor unconscious. He raised the window, climbed into the smoke-filled room and crawled to the woman. He picked her up, carried her to the window and passed her out to police officers before he climbed out the window. Cunningham assisted the medical team that had arrived with patient care. The victim was transported to a hospital, where she spent two weeks recovering from smoke inhalation |
Allen R. Cunningham Parma, OH FD $250 Award |
 |
On Jan. 22, 2000 at
12:35 P.M., firefighters responded to a fire in a two-story apartment
building.. Heavy smoke and fire were coming from the second-floor living
room window and heavy smoke was venting from a bedroom window. Firefighter
Travis K. Fry crawled about 18 feet down a hot, smoke-filled hallway to
enter a bedroom. He located a 2-year old unconscious victim. Fry revived
the child, carried him out of the building, and transported him to a
hospital for treatment. The child was released from the hospital on the
following day.
Fry and two other firefighters who were advancing a line and searching all had their SCBA harness straps charred or scorched from the intense heat.
|
Travis K. Fry Tulsa, OK FD $250 Award |
 |
|
James H. Pfister, Jr. |
Roy Burgess |
San Diego Fire & Life Safety Services |
| On the
morning of Jan. 27, 2000 units of the San Diego Fire and Life Safety
Services responded to a report of a structure fire in an upstairs
apartment in a two-story apartment building . Truck 14 was first to arrive
and encountered intense fire conditions. Civilians at the scene reported
that an elderly disabled woman was trapped in the involved unit. Without
hesitation or the protection of hose lines Firefighter James H. Pfister
Jr. and Fire Engineer Roy Burgess entered the apartment to search for the
victim. Fire was blowing out the front window and extending throughout the
apartment. Pfister and Burgess forced entry into heavy smoke and high
heat, bringing both men to their hands and knees. Pfister found the
unconscious disabled woman in the rear bathroom. The
two firefighters began to remove the woman from the bathroom.
|
At this time, a liquid oxygen generator used by the victim failed and began introducing 100% oxygen into the area, creating an untenable environment. Using their bodies to shield the victim from the intense heat, Pfister and Burgess removed the victim to the exterior of the apartment. Due to the increased intensity of the fire, a large overhead fiberglass awning ignited. Realizing that their exit had been cut off, Pfister and Burgess escaped by forcing entry into a neighboring apartment. They also began resuscitation of the victim. The first-due engine sent an attack team with a hose line that knocked the fire down to a level where the victim, who suffered third- and fourth degree burns over 85% of her body, could be removed to the San Diego Burn and Trauma Center, where she died several hours later. |
 |
On April 29, 2000,
at 3:03 P.M., a dive rescue assignment was dispatched to the lake shore
for a car that had been intentionally driven into the water. Witnesses
confirmed that the car had entered the extremely cold water with an adult
and baby inside. Upon arrival of the Dive Team, Firefighter Timothy A.
Newman donned his dive setup and met Firefighter Dennis Curley in the
water to attempt to move the victims from the submerged vehicle. Newman
descended and assessed the vehicle. He determined that the doors would be
impossible to open and that the windows needed to be broken. He rose to
the surface to obtain a window punch. Curley was using the punch, so
Newman decided to use his dive knife. Low visibility in the lake made this
unsuccessful. He then obtained an axe. He dove again and forced entry. He
located the small child, whom he immediately brought up to the surface. He
dove again and found the adult entangled in a seatbelt that needed to be
cut. Newman had to obtain another knife. Checking his air supply, he had
less than two minutes. Operating alone in zero visibility, he cut the seat
belt, but he was now out of air. He couldn’t inflate his buoyancy
compensator to assist in bringing himself and the victim to the surface.
Should he return to the surface to remove his face mask and breathe or
should he hold the victim and struggle to the surface without taking a
breath? He decided to pull himself and the victim along a rope being
pulled in by land-based members. While he clung to the side wall of the
lake, he was assisted in removing his face piece, which finally allowed
him to breathe. Unfortunately both victims died from their injuries.
|
Timothy A. Newman Milwaukee, WI FD $250 Award |
 |
At his first fire, Firefighter Allen entered an involved structure, climbed the stairs without a hose line, and found an unconscious victim at the head of the stairs. He called for assistance from his captain, and the two removed the victim to safety.
|
David T. Allen Columbus, OH Division of Fire $100 Award |
 |
On February 13,
2000 Firefighter Ashby rescued a disabled man trapped on the second floor
of a townhouse fire. Ashby was the only one of his crew who was able to
arrive on the scene fully bunkered out. He was told that a victim was
trapped in an upstairs bedroom and went in without a hose line in zero
visibility. He found the disabled victim, carried him to safety, and
turned him over to EMS crews. he then took in the hose line with another
firefighter and fought the fire. The victim survived his injuries.
|
|
Christopher Ashby Miami - Dade, FL Fire Rescue $100 Award |
 |
On
October 29, 1999 at 6:27 PM, Medic 24 and Ladder 24 were dispatched to a
"car in the water” at a fenced-in pond. Medic 24 was the first to
arrive on the scene followed by 3 police cruisers. They landed about 25
feet from the shore, in 8 feet of water. Two men managed to get out of the
car. One swam to shore. The driver swam about 6 feet and sank. Firefighter
Jeff Blair and 3 police officers climbed the fence and dove into the
water. The water temperature at the time was 52 degrees.
With the help of one of the police officers Firefighter Blair found the victim and pulled him to shore. He started CPR until the next medic reached that side of pond. He also flew to OSU Hospital by Medflight with the victim, who was later pronounced dead .
|
|
Jeffrey S. Blair Columbus, OH Division of Fire $100 Award |
 |
Ladder 110 was
notified that a Building had exploded and collapsed. Upon arrival Captain
Loper concluded that the building had totally collapsed and could not be
entered safely until arrival of the collapse unit. The building’s front
four story wall was now freestanding, since the floors behind had been
blown away. District Chief Burns ordered L-110 to see if they could make
entry and do a quick primary search under the collapse area. Captain Loper
decided to split into two teams to accomplish this dangerous task. While
he and the forcible entry team made entry from under the front stairs
Firefighter Michael P. Brown, operating as part of Ladder 110 search team
#2, gained access to the rear through an adjoining building. Chunks of
debris were falling and the strong odor of gas threatened to ignite and
cause a secondary explosion and collapse. Brown found a dazed man whom he
assisted to the safety of the rear yard. Firefighter Brown operated in a
precarious position, placing himself in danger to make this rescue, in the
finest tradition of the Fire Department of New York.
|
|
Michael P. Brown FDNY $100 Award |
Return to 1997 Directory of Winners | Return to Home Page | Return to Hall of Heroes Page
|1998 Directory of Winners| 1999 Directory of Winners | Return to Top of Page | Table of Contents Page