Officer

California Highway Patrol

8/12/2004

Special Act Award (Gold)

California Highway Patrol Officer Jay McPeek, on August 13, 2004 performed an act of heroism at great risk to his personal safety by rescuing a victim from a burning tract-trailer combination that had been involved in a traffic collision. At approximately 11:47 a.m. Officer McPeek received a call of a collision involving a tractor-trailer that was northbound United States 395. This tractor-trailer ran off the west side of US 395 crossed approximately 700 feet of desert and plunged into a ravine. As a result of the collision, the load of glass bottles of mayonnaise ruptured through the front of the trailer and penetrated the sleeper area of the tractor. Officer McPeek responded to the scene arriving within three minutes. Officer McPeek observed the tractor started to burn. He ran across the desert and through the broken bottles of mayonnaise to reach the driver’s side of the tractor. As he approached the cab, he noticed the left fuel tank was ruptured and leaking diesel fuel onto the ground. Officer McPeek climbed onto the cab but could not see inside due to the black smoke from the fire. He then observed the driver next to the driver window. Officer McPeek was unable to open the driver door, because it was jammed shut due to the collision. Officer McPeek made his way through the broken glass and mayonnaise to the passenger side of the tractor. Officer McPeek attempted to open the passenger door, but it too was jammed. Officer McPeek used his baton to break out the passenger side window. As black smoke and flames rushed out of the cab’s interior, he could not see inside but heard the driver moaning. Officer McPeek was forced to back away from the cab because the flames were emitting from the broken window. Officer McPeek returned to the driver side of the tractor. The driver was now a few inches away from the officer on the other side of a closed window. The officer used his baton to break out the driver’s side window, reached inside the burning cab, grabbed the driver’s arm and attempted to pull him to safety. The driver was able to pull free of Officer McPeek’s grasp and backed away into the flames. Officer McPeek was forced to again retreat from the cab, due to flames. The driver climbed back into the sleeper berth of the tractor. The driver slid out of the sleeper berth through an opening in the cab and climbed into the trailer. Officer McPeek climbed through the broken glass bottles of mayonnaise in pursuit of the driver, located the driver through smoke in the trailer and pulled him outside to safety, then rolled away from the burning tractor-trailer. The driver survived the collision with serious burns over his entire body.