May 12
...serving up your daily dish.
Since we've been hearing a lot of sirens lately, let's tip our hats to the guys who protect us by running into burning buildings, rescuing children, and fighting street crime. Twenty five Essex County policemen and firefighters were saluted Wednesday by the 200 Club of Essex County, with valor awards for exceptional bravery, courage and dedication during 2005. The greater Baristaville heroes included in the awards ceremony were Lt. Timothy Murphy, Bloomfield Fire Department, Capt. David Flanagan, Firefighters Joseph Coletta and Philip Malia, Bloomfield Fire Department, Sgt. Robert Acceturo and officer Timothy Banta, Verona Police, Corey Keepers, Cedar Grove Fire Department, and Batallion Chief Anthony DeBerto, Belleville Fire Department. Congratulations, guys. Read their stories here.
May 12, 2006 in Major Dudes | Permalink
i'm in awe of the bravery of firemen. these heroes who run into burning buildings as part of their job makes me pause and thank them for all they risk.
Posted by: Iceman | May 12, 2006 12:24:00 PM
One of those brave Bloomfield firemen is my husband. I'm so proud of him - thank you for posting this up here. He reads every day also - he'll be thrilled!
Posted by: Megan | May 12, 2006 3:21:00 PM
ยป More From The Star Ledger
The heroes and their deeds
Thursday, May 11, 2006
200 Club of Essex County Public Safety Valor Awards Recipients for 2005
Capt. John Melody, Essex County Prosecutor's Office: After a woman and her infant were kidnapped, Melody communicated with the kidnapper and negotiated with him for several hours, eventually getting him to surrender without harming his victims.
Detective Quaasim Austin, Irvington Police: After a shooting by rival gang members, Austin began questioning a witness at a hospital and discovered the witness was a gang member with a loaded handgun hidden in his waistband. Austin arrested the man and recovered the gun.
Officers Edward Vernotica and Ronald Polhill, Newark Police: Both officers responded to a housing project where a man with a gun began shooting at them inside a stairwell. Though both officers were wounded, they continued the pursuit and arrested the gunman.
Sgt. Mark Deuer and officer Michael Cristofano, North Caldwell Police: After a report of a strong-arm robbery in a neighboring town, the two officers went after the suspect who was spotted in North Caldwell. They chased the man through the snow and woods on foot, fell and were injured, but persisted, eventually arresting the man.
Trooper Thomas DiStefano, New Jersey State Police: During a traffic stop along Route 78, DiStefano realized one of the people in the car had a revolver in the back seat. DiStefano was able to relay the information to Newark police officers who assisted in arresting the people in the car and found two loaded guns and 100 decks of heroin.
Troopers Michael Kenyon and James Thompson, New Jersey State Police: The driver of a car pulled over by the troopers sped away after they saw there was a gun in the car. The troopers chased the driver for 18 blocks and also chased him on foot, eventually arresting the man and recovering the man's loaded semi-automatic handgun.
Officer Walter Imbert, Orange Police: Imbert was the first person to arrive at a two-story house on fire and without protective gear, raced into the house and rescued an elderly woman who told him her husband was still inside. He returned to the burning building and with the help of firefighters, rescued the elderly man who was overcome with smoke.
Capt. Shawn Daly and firefighter Sam Caivano, Millburn Fire Department; officer Brian Gilfedder, Millburn Police: When two 8-year-old boys fell into an icy pond, Gilfedder, Daly and Caivano dove into the freezing water, broke ice with their hands and swam through the water to rescue the boys.
Sgt. Robert Acceturo and officer Timothy Banta, Verona Police; Fire Chief Kent Yates, Roseland Fire Department; firefighter Corey Keepers, Cedar Grove Fire Department: When a suicidal man climbed to the top of a water tower in the Hilltop Reservation, he fell off a walkway and hung 90 feet in the air after his foot became tangled in a support beam. The man was flailing and moaning, and Acceturo and Banta volunteered to go into the rescue bucket to accompany him down. When the ladder could not reach the man, a Roseland ladder truck was called in and Yates, Keepers and the other two officers were successful and bringing the man safely off the tower.
Batallion Chief Anthony DeBerto, Belleville Fire Department: DeBerto was off duty when he saw smoke coming from a house on Hickory Court in Belleville. After calling 911, he crawled through the burning house, where he found and rescued a dog, then returned to the house and found an elderly woman asleep in the home. DeBerto shielded the woman from the flames with his body as he helped her escape from the house.
Lt. Timothy Murphy, Bloomfield Fire Department: While fighting a fire inside a fourth-floor apartment, Murphy saw flammable liquid spill on fellow Firefighter Daniel Jacunski and saw Jancunski become engulfed in flames. Lt. Murphy pulled Jancunski from the apartment and smothered the flames, burning both of his hands in the process.
Capt. David Flanagan, Firefighters Joseph Coletta and Philip Malia, Bloomfield Fire Department: While assisting at a fire inside a three-story building in Belleville, a firefighter became trapped as a ceiling collapsed upon him on the third floor. Flanagan, Coletta and Malia were sent in and lifted the debris off the firefighter, rescuing him from the building, in an environment of intense heat and flames.
Capt. William Weidele, Capt. Demetrious Robinson, firefighter Ashton Robinson, Newark Fire Department: While conducting a search inside a burning house, they came upon an unconscious man in a rear bedroom. Working as a team, they were able to get the man, who was in respiratory arrest, out of the burning building and finish the search of the house.
Source:200 Club of Essex County
Posted by: artisfortrds | May 12, 2006 3:55:21 PM
Salutes to all are in order--God Bless, be safe, and stay pure of heart.
Posted by: cstarling | May 13, 2006 4:58:58 PM
Congratulations and kudos to all that received awards. They are well deserved and do not come often enough. (Even simple thank yous don't come often enough.)
Has anyone noticed however that EMS is not accepted or even recognized by the Essex County 200 club?
Board members of the 200 club were approached informally a few years ago by a representative of the NJ State First Aid Council regarding inclusion and recognition and were turned down flat.
Posted by: JimT | May 15, 2006 9:09:51 AM
I am currently working on an assignment in the DC area and they are celebrating National Police Week here that culminated today with a memorial service at the capitol. Police from all over the nation are here. They're everywhere. It's probably the safest time of the year in DC.The ceremonies and festivities are nice but the thing that strikes me the most is the obvious pride they have in what they do.
Posted by: BeanCounter | May 15, 2006 12:06:03 PM
I am the proud fiancee of P/O Walter Imbert of the Orange Police Department. I just wanted to say a local thank you for your article. All of these guys went beyond the call of duty-- God Bless each and everyone of them for keeping us safe everyday!
Posted by: Colleen Quinn | May 29, 2006 5:32:27 PM
One of those brave Bloomfield firemen is my son,the other thee are friends.How lucky I am! I am so proud of them. What greater complement could a son pay a father ,than to follow in his footsteps.
Posted by: Starchief | Jun 27, 2006 11:28:13 AM
my congratulations to all the people who participated in this valorous activity, I hope that someday the great leaders really give you all that you deserve.
Posted by: Cialis Online | Apr 27, 2011 2:09:19 PM
God bless and protect our heroes.
Thank You Very Much For Risking Your Lives For Ours.
Posted by: Peter Garcia | Jul 19, 2011 1:45:09 PM
