Highway Maintenance Leadworker

Department of Transportation

3/1/2019

Special Service Award (Silver)

On March 1, 2018, around 5:00 pm., California Department of Transportation Highway Maintenance Leadworker Thomas (Dave) Britt was plowing snow during a winter storm when he received a call from California Department of Transportation Maintenance Supervisor Lonnie Swartout. He needed immediate assistance with a vehicle accident located on a narrow part of the road with a very steep embankment. The vehicle was about 100 feet down the embankment, on its side, hung up on a tree and facing uphill. Mr. Britt proceeded down the hill to the vehicle, where California Department of Transportation Highway Maintenance Worker Benjamin Anderson was already assisting the injured passengers. A woman was found outside of the vehicle with numerous injuries and was becoming hypothermic due to exposure to the cold and heavy snowfall and a man was found trapped inside of the vehicle with two puppies. Mr. Britt comforted the barely conscious woman by keeping her warm with the articles of clothing he could find and using plastic tarps to keep her dry. Approximately two hours later, the fire department brought a Stokes Basket which was used to load and hike her out on a trail. Mr. Anderson managed to extract and rescue the kenneled puppies and man from inside of the vehicle. When Mr. Britt went to retrieve his plow truck to assist clearing the road for rescue vehicles, he discovered that his plow truck had caught fire after being parked for five hours. He extinguished the fire and then took a California Department of Transportation crewmember back to the maintenance yard so he could get another plow truck to open the road. Mr. Britt assisted in this very dangerous rescue for almost 24 hours in extreme weather, steep terrain, and in a rural area with difficult access. Mr. Britt had a pivotal role in this rescue and with no regard to his own safety, he went above and beyond the call of duty. The State of California takes great pride in presenting this Silver Medal of Valor to California Department of Transportation Highway Maintenance Leadworker Thomas Britt.