Forestry Equipment Manager

Department of Forestry and Fire Protection

5/13/2008

Special Act Award (Gold)

At approximately 6:00 p.m. on May 13, 2008, Forestry Equipment Manager Corey Call was driving northbound on Hwy. 101 near the city of Cloverdale, when he noticed a vehicle drifting from the southbound lane to the northbound lane. He did an abrupt U-turn and sped up alongside the moving car and discovered the driver was unresponsive. The vehicle crossed over the center divide, went across the northbound lane and crashed into a group of trees. Mr. Call alerted the St. Helena Emergency Command Center of the accident and went to help the driver. A CHP officer arrived on the scene and broke the passenger side window with his baton, allowing Mr. Call access to the victim. Mr. Call noticed smoke coming from and filling the inside of the car, and a grass fire had started to burn the area next to the vehicle. He quickly crawled into the smoke-filled car and attempted to pull the semi-conscious driver out the passenger door. Unfortunately, the limited space and damage to the car made it difficult to pull the woman out, and she slipped back into the driver’s seat. Mr. Call tried two more times to pull her out of the car but the smoke and heat drove him away. Even with his valiant efforts, he was unable to save the woman who perished in the fire.