Firefighter

Other

1/1/2011

Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor

On January 1, 2011, at 1:30 a.m., Firefighter William Mulkeen and other San Francisco Fire Department personnel were dispatched to an active fire of a three-story multi-residential building. Upon arrival, the fire truck was unable to park in a manner to deploy the truck’s high rise ladder. Smoke was pouring from the top of the building and while a perimeter check was conducted two elderly people were seen frantically waving their arms and pleading for help from a third story window. An immediate rescue of the trapped residents was needed. As is one of the vital skill-sets of California’s firefighters, San Francisco Fire Department personnel quickly improvised another rescue plan due to the unavailability of the truck’s ladder. As critical time hung in the balance, Firefighter Mulkeen, his captain and another firefighter took action. The triad used a portable 24-foot ladder and rope to “bridge” the ladder over an alley located between the burning structure and the roof of the adjacent building. While the Captain lowered the ladder into the window where the two elderly people were trapped, the other firefighter anchored the ladder. Firefighter Mulkeen who was wearing full firefighter safety equipment then crawled across the make-shift bridge ladder in between the two buildings to rescue the trapped residents. When Firefighter Mulkeen reached the two people, they were emotionally overcome by smoke, fearful of crawling across the ladder due the concrete alley below and were now uncooperative. Firefighter Mulkeen removed his turnout coat and wrapped it around the first victim in order to restrict his movement. He then removed his self-contained breathing apparatus, grabbed the man and carried the man while crawling back across the ladder. Once again, Firefighter Mulkeen put himself in harm’s way and returned across the ladder to rescue the second trapped person who was also uncooperative. He repeated the same actions and without hesitation, he carried her across the ladder to the roof of the adjacent building. Due to Firefighter Mulkeen’s extraordinary bravery, both residents’ lives were saved.