Fire Apparatus Operator

Department of Forestry and Fire Protection

10/12/2022

Special Act Award (Gold)

In the early hours of the morning of October 12, 2020, Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Fire Apparatus Engineer Omar Desiderio, Fire Apparatus Engineer Tyler Williams, and others were dispatched to a two-story building engulfed in flames in the mountain community of Pine Cove. Upon arrival, fire department personnel encountered flames throughout the first story, overcoming the second story, and burning through the roof. One victim was on the roof frantically calling for help with a second victim unconscious and trapped inside a second story bedroom. An immediate rescue of the trapped residents was needed. Unable to make access from the first floor, Engineer Williams and Engineer Desiderio leaped into action without direction and placed a ladder to the second story to gain access. They broke open the bedroom window and dove headfirst into the burning room without hose lines. Implementing a left-hand search, they located the unconscious victim under heavy fire and smoke conditions. Engineer Williams and Engineer Desiderio dragged the victim through the bedroom window with heavy fire rolling over them. The victim was flown by air ambulance to a burn center with severe injuries, but after treatment for 3rd degree burns, she survived and fully recovered. With no regard for his own safety, Fire Apparatus Engineer Desiderio went above and beyond the call of duty. The State of California takes great pride in presenting the Gold Medal of Valor to Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Fire Apparatus Engineer Omar Desiderio.