Deputy State Fire Marshal

Department of Forestry and Fire Protection

5/18/2008

Special Service Award (Silver)

On May 18, 2008, while at the Grand Marina in the community of Alameda, Deputy State Fire Marshal John Guhl heard a loud screeching noise approaching from a distance. He turned to see a car on top of the embankment driving towards a fifteen foot rock-faced cliff embankment. The elderly driver suddenly stopped, leaving the passenger side wheel suspended above the embankment. The driver then put the vehicle in reverse and appeared to hit something from behind. Fire Marshal Guhl ran to the top of the embankment and watched as the car drove forward hitting a tree and the raised sidewalk next to the cliff embankment. Fire Marshal Guhl instructed a bystander to call 9-1-1 and alert emergency responders. The driver continued to slam his car into pier posts, large concrete barricades, and at one point Fire Marshal Guhl had to move behind a tree to avoid being hit. When the car became stuck in a flower bed, Fire Marshal Guhl approached the vehicle, identified himself, and asked the man to turn off the car. When the driver tried to back up again, Fire Marshal Guhl opened the unlocked passenger door, jumped inside, lunged for the car’s ignition key, and turned the engine off. The driver struggled, but Fire Marshal Guhl was able to push the driver back, put the transmission in park, remove the key from the ignition, and exit the car. The driver was upset but remained safely in the vehicle until law enforcement arrived to arrest the driver. Fire Marshal Guhl’s courageous efforts prevented further damage to the marina’s property and saved the driver and other bystanders from injury or possible death.