On April 21, Captain Eric Hankins of the Yuba City (CA) Fire Department was presented with the Ray Downey Courage and Valor Award at the Opening Ceremonies at the Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) in Indianapolis. The award, instituted in honor of the firefighters lost on 9/11, memorializes the name and legacy of Fire Department of New York’s (FDNY) Deputy Chief Ray Downey, one of the greatest fire service leaders of our time. It consists of a medallion and a $35,000 check.
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| (1) (l-r) Ron Kanterman, NFAAA president; FDNY Battalion Chief Joseph Downey; Captain Eric Hankins, C&V Award recipient; PennWell Corporation CEO Robert F. Biolchini; FDNY Battalion Chief Chuck Downey; NFFF Director Ron Siarnicki; and Fire Engineering Editor in Chief and FDIC Education Director Robert Halton. |
On January 12, 2009, Hankins rescued two children, one at a time, from a house fire under adverse and dangerous life-threatening conditions. He remained calm and focused even though he had no protection from the fire. Because children’s lives were at stake, he entered the burning house without personal protective gear, without water, without backup, and at great risk to his own life—not only once, but twice, under worsening conditions the second time. He noticed the fire as he was driving to the fire station.
Robert F. Biolchini, the chief executive officer of PennWell Corporation, the parent company of Fire Engineering and FDIC, presented the award in conjunction with FDNY Battalion Chiefs Joseph and Chuck Downey, Ray Downey’s sons, and Robert Halton, editor in chief of Fire Engineering and education director of FDIC.
In announcing the awardee, Biolchini noted, “Captain Hankins’ conspicuous act of bravery under life-threatening conditions resulted in saving the lives of two young children who, without his intervention, would have succumbed to a tragic fate. His actions reflect on the fire service’s true values. So today we recognize him individually; but, in a greater sense, his actions are a mirror of the outstanding actions all of you are facing and performing each day when you are called.”
Also represented on stage for the presentation were National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) Director Ron Siarnicki and National Fire Academy Alumni Association (NFAAA) President Ron Kanterman, whose organizations assist in the Ray Downey Courage and Valor Award selection process.
Line-of-Duty Deaths
March 29. Firefighter/Paramedic John P. Moore, 56, Columbus (OH) Division of Fire: apparent heart attack.
March 30. Firefighter Brian Carey, 28, Homewood (IL) Fire Department: injuries sustained during a rescue in a residential structural fire.
March 31. Captain Dennis Robinson, 61, Three Points Fire Department, Tucson, AZ: collapsed at training in portable burn trailer on March 30; investigation underway.
March 31. Lieutenant Edward Teare, 53, Independence (OH) Fire Department: cardiac arrest.
April 3. Firefighter Leo Powell, 74, Morgan Township Volunteer Fire Department, Lucasville, OH: apparent heart attack.
April 9. Firefighter Donald E. Schaper, 53, Timber Knob Volunteer Fire Department, Gainsville, MO: unknown medical emergency; cause pending.
April 11. Assistant Chief Garrett Loomis, 26, Sackets Harbor (NY) Fire Department: injuries sustained in silo explosion at a reported silo fire; incident under investigation.
April 11. Captain Harold Reed Sr., 74, Peru (KS) Fire District: smoke inhalation at a rural brush fire.
April 12. Captain Vincent Iaccino, 65, Roosevelt Fire District Engine Company #1, Hyde Park, NY: cardiac arrest.
Source: USFA Firefighters Memorial Database.
Tom Brennan Lifetime Achievement: Ron Siarnicki
Ronald Jon Siarnicki, executive director of the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) since 2001, was presented with Fire Engineering’s Tom Brennan Lifetime Achievement Award at the Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) General Session on April 22 in Indianapolis.
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| (2) Ronald Jon Siarnicki, NFFF executive director, recipient of Fire Engineering’s Tom Brennan Lifetime Achievement award, addresses the audience at the FDIC General Session. |
Siarnicki oversees all programs, services, and activities of the NFFF, including the Memorial Weekend, survivor support programs, fire service training and support programs, and the national memorial park that honors fallen firefighters. Siarnicki has 33 years of fire/rescue/EMS operational experience.
Robert Halton, editor in chief of Fire Engineering and education director of FDIC, and Eileen Brennan Cress, daughter of Tom Brennan, presented the award. Brennan was the editor of Fire Engineering for eight years and a technical editor. He had more than 35 years of fire service experience, including more than 20 years with the Fire Department of New York and five years as chief of the Waterbury (CT) Fire Department.
FE/ISFSI Instructor of the Year: Robert Colameta Jr.
Robert J. Colameta Jr., a firefighter with the Everett (MA) Fire Department, was named Fire Engineering (FE)/International Society of Fire Service Instructors (ISFSI) George D. Post Instructor of the Year at the 2010 Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) in Indianapolis. Colameta has more than 22 years of experience in adult education. He worked for the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services for 10 years, serving as assistant coordinator of curriculum development, assistant coordinator for the Office of Certification, and coordinator of staff services-instructor training.
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(3) (l-r) Glenn Corbett, Fire Engineering technical editor; Firefighter Robert J. Colameta Jr., recipient of the FE/ISFSI George D. Post Instructor of the Year Award; and Eddie Buchanan, ISFSI president. |
In 2003, he developed The Public Safety Education Network (www.publicsafetyedu.com). In 2005, the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation contracted him to develop a curriculum around the Courage to Be Safe® training program; he was named the program’s national manager in 2006. He developed the Courage to Be Safe® Online Trainers Resource Network and has developed and deployed more than 36 online learning media segments based on the 16 Life Safety Initiatives.
The award, which incorporates the Training Achievement Award previously given by Fire Engineering at the FDIC, is named for George D. Post, a long-time member of the ISFSI and a former member of the Fire Department of New York. Many consider him the father of visual training material used to train fire service personnel around the world.
