By Leonor Vivanco
San Bernardino County Sun
Copyright 2007 MediaNews Group, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
FONTANA, Calif. — Getting their hands dirty was all in a day’s work.
Using small hand shovels, San Bernardino County firefighters Mike Westfall and Dave Dimauro scooped out chocolate-colored dirt to help rescue Ruben Avila, 25, buried up to his knees in a trench in the Southridge area.
The man was trapped by an 8-inch pipe for two hours on Feb. 9. Avila was installing a sewer line for California Pumping and Sanitation Systems on Almond Avenue when the cave-in occurred and he injured his ankle.
The job the firefighters did in getting the San Bernardino man out of the 10-foot-deep and 4-foot-wide trench by removing the dirt and a section of the pipe was recognized Thursday evening at the 2007 Police & Fire Recognition Ceremony at Sierra Lakes Country Golf Club.
The two firefighters along with firefighters Ed Neufeld and David Bonney, who helped out, were presented with the Lifesaving Award.
“It’s a nice gesture but we view it as `That’s what our job is,’ ” Westfall said of receiving the award.
Although firefighters understand there is risk associated with their jobs, they don’t routinely perform trench rescues, said San Bernardino County Fire Chief Thom Wellman.
“They accepted the assignment without hesitation or reservation,” he said.
Two months earlier, Fontana police Officer Brian Keyner used his hands to help someone.
A 9-1-1 call came on Dec. 28 reporting a woman in labor.
Beating the paramedics, Keyner got to the home in the 7300 block of Rosebay Place and saw a woman’s legs in the air and a baby’s head crowning as he raced toward the bathroom.
He carefully slid on a pair of gloves, and helped deliver the 8-pound baby minutes later.
The officer tapped the baby’s back and cleared her mouth with his finger. The baby, named Elia, began to breathe on her own.
With the umbilical cord still attached, Keyner cleaned the baby girl off and handed her to her mother as they waited for paramedics to arrive.
The family “called Officer Keyner a hero and were thankful he arrived in time to deliver Elia,” said Police Chief Larry Clark.
Keyner, too, was modest about the award.
“I was surprised I could get something for this. Any other person would do the same thing in my position and try to help somebody out,” he said.
Another Lifesaving Award was presented to Fontana police Officer Jason Perniciaro for performing CPR on a woman, who was unresponsive and appeared to have had a heart attack.
Firefighter of the Year awards were presented to Capt. Jack Dejong for performing a swiftwater rescue of a woman and her dog in the Lytle Creek wash, and to retired Capt. Richard Billings, a third-generation firefighter, for his work in his 34-year career.
The Excellence awards were presented to:
Fontana police Officer Summer Ing for her work in the narcotics unit in 2006 that led to the recovery of nearly $200,000 and 84 drug-related arrests and seizures of 24 handguns and drugs including 53 pounds of marijuana.
Fontana police Cpl. David Moore, officers Rosalie Garcia and Patricia Coyle for their work as advisers to the Explorer program in addition to their jobs as school resource officers.
An Exceptional Service Award was presented to San Bernardino County Fire Department office assistant Theresa Mesa for her customer service in keeping track of daily staffing needs, filling vacancies due to illness, holiday or vacation time, and answering phone calls.
Fontana police officers honored by the California Highway Patrol for the recovery of a grand-theft auto were Brian McLane, David Janusz, Tracy Dills, Luis Valenzuela, Katie Beebe, Julio Landaverde, Nicholas Saddler and Andrew Vestey.
The Unit Citation Award was presented to the Fontana Police Department’s Major Accident Investigation Team for its investigations into traffic collisions. The team has seen an increase in the number of criminal filings by the District Attorney’s Office in cases they investigate. The team includes Sgt. Robert Morris, Cpl. William Waddell, Cpl. David Lally, and officers Doug Locey, Wayne Blessinger, Steven Reed, Anthony Cafaro, Kirsten Ryn and Christine Billings.