MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE BARSTOW, Calif. -- The Department of Defense has recognized five members of the Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow Fire Department for giving outstanding service to their department and the public during 2010.
Four MCLB Barstow firefighters received the DoD Firefighter Heroism Award for 2010. Acting captain/firefighter Ryan Hanify, along with firefighters Joe Mashburn, Nathan Beber and Louis Santos received the award for participating in a swift water rescue of a stranded motorist from the rain-swollen Mojave River in Yermo, Calif., Dec. 23, 2010.
Chief Tommy Thompson, who submitted the four firefighters for the award, described the risk they faced while participating in the rescue.
“The usually dry river bed suddenly had five feet of water flowing in it at 15 to 20 mph, which was strong enough to sweep the rescuers off their feet,” he said.
“The victim was in 40 degree Fahrenheit water with an outside temperature of 28 degrees, and stood a very real chance of dying from hypothermia or drowning if not rescued quickly,” Thompson said.
The veteran firefighters, don’t think of themselves as heroes.
“I was just doing my job. It’s what I was trained for,” Barstow native Joey Mashburn said.
Louis Santos of Simi Valley, Calif., said the day started just like any other day on the job until he was called out.
“Being a firefighter is a great job, but it’s not for everybody. You have to enjoy what you do and be ready to do extraordinary things at times,” Santos said.
Nathan Beber of Monterey, Calif., who was also picked as the 2010 Marine Corps Firefighter of the Year by the Marine Corps, said the high desert in California and Arizona has some of the most intense swift water in the country during the rainy season.
“I go to a lot of training and just like the Marines who will get to use that training in war, I am excited to use my swift water rescue training on the job,” Beber said.
Acting Captain/Firefighter Ryan Hanify, also from Barstow, who helped coordinate the rescue, said his 11 years as a firefighter have been rewarding.
“It’s a great career. If you want to help people, this is the job to do it,” Hanify said.
The DoD also recognized Assistant Fire Chief Paul Purdy as Fire Officer of the Year for 2010.
The application for the award lists the many talents of Purdy, chief among them, guiding the MCLB Barstow Fire Department to becoming the first Marine Corps fire department to be accredited by the Commission on Fire Accreditation International, said Thompson.
“Accreditation means the MCLB Fire Department has met or exceeded levels of performance as an emergency services agency,” Thompson said.
Born at Weed Army Hospital, Ft. Irwin, Calif., the assistant chief with 21 years experience as a firefighter said his motivation is to go above and beyond what’s asked of him.
“I do it to help pull our fire department forward and improve the service we provide to our populace. Never sit still, never be stagnant, always improve, that’s what we’re trying to do,” he said.
Chief Thompson said the firefighters may not like the publicity they received during the DoD awards ceremony in Atlanta earlier this year, but they deserve the recognition.
“The four individuals who stood up in front of 2,000 screaming firefighters in Atlanta, you could see on their faces that even as modest as they are, they got to see just how proud their families were of them, and so am I.”