Photo By Staff Sgt. Robert Gavaldon | Randy Smith, assistant deputy commandant for Plans, Policies, and Operations (PP&O),...... read more read more
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On Aug. 20, 2015, four firefighters from the Marine Corps Base Quantico (MCBQ) Fire and Emergency Services were the first on the scene of a fire that broke out in a second floor apartment at 204 Broadway in the town of Quantico.
“What I remember the most about that day is the way everything flowed smoothly for our crews as we performed our duties that we train for frequently,” Firefighter Donald Perry said.
Perry, Sgt. James Thacker, Capt. David T. Williams and Sgt. Cliff Burton rescued five people from the apartment fire, which was said to have been caused by improperly discarded smoking materials. For these lifesaving efforts, the four men received the 2015 Security and Emergency Services Lifesaving Award from the Marine Corps. They were recognized last week at the U.S. Marine Corps Senior Leaders’ Security Conference at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego.
“A firefighter is all I ever wanted to be since I was 2 years old. My father was a volunteer firefighter at the Rockhill Volunteer Fire Department in Stafford, where he inspired me to follow my dream,” Thacker said. “So it’s an honor to receive such an award and recognition for our jobs.”
“Everyone expects you to say that you like being a hero, but for me this job has never been about being a hero,” Perry said. “It has always been about the community and being there at the right time when they need us. I am honored that I could be there to create a positive outcome in a bad situation for someone that needed us when it counted the most. It is all part of the job.”
MCBQ’s fire department was also named the Marine Corps’ Medium Fire Department of the Year for 2015. As such, it is now in the pool being considered for the Department of Defense Fire Department of the Year award.
“Being recognized and awarded the Medium Fire Department of the Year is a great honor for our department,” Fire Chief Bruce Sullivan said. “It establishes a criterion for how our department compares to the other departments similar to our size and mission in the Marine Corps. We received this award because of the hard-working and selfless acts our employees perform on a daily basis.”
There are 55 total fire stations aboard 19 installations across the Marine Corps. MCBQ’s fire department employs 81 firefighters/emergency management technicians.
The Lifesaving award, which was established in 2009 and is one of two civilian awards presented by Marine Corps Security and Emergency Services in honor of Jim Kallstrom, a Marine veteran of Vietnam who went on to a distinguished career with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, is awarded annually to a civilian Marine who has performed a heroic or lifesaving act in the line of duty in 2015.
This is the first time employees of the MCBQ fire department have received this particular lifesaving award and the first time the department has been recognized as medium fire department of the year, Assistant Fire Chief Ulysses Taormina said.
The MCBQ fire department responded to 55 fire incidents in its demand zone in 2015, according to Taormina. These include structural, vehicle and outdoor fires.
| Date Taken: | 03.24.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 03.29.2016 12:26 |
| Story ID: | 193778 |
| Location: | QUANTICO, VA, US |
| Web Views: | 172 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Marine Corps Base Quantico Fire Department Receives Multiple Awards, by Adele Uphaus-Conner, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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