On 22 January 2000 the Falls Creek Fire Department was called to a two car MVA on State Route 219 North of Falls Creek with the Brockway Fire Department called as mutual aide. It was reported that one car was on fire and the other was blocking the hi-way. I was in our rescue truck, the first responding unit and first unit to arrive on scene
We arrived just behind our chief and immediately secured the scene and attempted to find out where the occupants of the vehicles were. We discovered that there was no entrapment in either vehicle and that one patient was sitting in a passerby's car with moderate injuries and the other was lying on the berm of the road about 30 feet from the burning car with sever injuries.
Our engine arrived and started extinquishing the car that by this time was fully envolved. Our Emt's and First responders tended to the injured along with our local ambulance services.
Once the fire was out and the injured were being transported to the hospital I discovered that four area men had pulled this woman from the car that was on fire as it was burning.
They could not get the doors open and in there struggle with the doors they actually ripped the door skin off the drivers side. The patient was semi concious and could not help these men to free her self.
At this time the fire was contained in the engine compartment, but what these four men did not know was that there was a hole in the gas tank and the gasoline from the tank was working it's way through the snow towards the front of the car.
They pulled the woman from the car through the window and dragged her about thirty feet away when the car erupted into flames.Now this touched me and inspired me to do something for these men, but at the time I did not know what. But I took down their names and addresses, thanked them all and learned that one of them after saving this woman, was a photographer for our local newspaper and only at that point did he resume his work and he took pictures of the scene.
I thought about what these guys did for the woman in the car that day. Here were four men with no formal training what so ever in the Fire/Ems field that stopped and put their lives at risk to save anothers. I made phone calls, I sent E-mails, I wrote letters to try to find a way to show these four some appreciation and get them some type of local recognition.
Then it hit me. I knew that the Governor of Pennsylvania awarded merit citations for people like this so I contacted the Governors office and the people there were great. I spoke quickly Governor Ridge who thanked me for taking the time to send their names in for the merit. They took the four mens names and information about what they did and two weeks later I recieved their merit citations in the mail.
On 1 May 2000, All affiliated Fire/Ems Stations with the incident had representitives present to award these four men with their Governors citations of merit at the Falls Creek Fire Department.
Susan Hand of Brockway Pa. owes her life to these four men. She greatly appreciated what they did for her as you might expect.
Again, One year later, With many thanks to:
