CLEVELAND — On Thursday, paramedics, EMTs, firefighters, officers and dispatchers were recognized for their heroic actions at the Rotary Club of Cleveland Medal of Valor ceremony. Among the recipients were two paramedics who found a gunshot victim thanks to a dog and two paramedics who revived a premature infant born in a toilet.
Paramedics Randy Antonio and Robert Moyers
On April 22, 2018, paramedics Randy Antonio and Robery Moyers were dispatched to a call for a possible gunshot victim, according to a news release from the Rotary Club. The address they were given didn’t exist, but they saw a dog that appeared to be someone’s pet walking in the parking lot. Someone was able to direct them to the dog owner’s home, where they found a man who had shot himself in the head. The crew quickly treated him and controlled the bleeding. The dog was taken care of by the man who led the paramedics to the patient’s apartment.
Paramedic Benjamin Visocky and EMT Raebeth Hughes
On Nov. 15 of last year, paramedic Benjamin Visocky and EMT Raebeth Hughes were dispatched to a call for a 25-year-old woman who had given birth, the Rotary Club release continues. The woman had not known she was pregnant and delivered the very premature baby boy in the toilet. The child, who weighed just 2 pounds, was barely breathing and had a faint, slow pulse. The emergency workers performed CPR and hurried the newborn and mother to the emergency department, where the baby showed signs of improvement. He was then admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Firefighters John McGowan and Gregory Juratic
On April 14, 2018, Engine 13 with the Cleveland Division of Fire responded to Mill Creek Falls, where two juveniles had fallen from the waterfall into the turbulent water below, according to the Rotary Club. The scene was almost inaccessible, but firefighters climbed down the steep 60-foot cliff to find one victim clinging to a branch, and the other submerged. With no flotation vests, firefighters John McGowan and Gregory Juratic jumped into the frigid water to search for the missing kid. Just before the chief was about to order them out, Juratic found the boy in 6-foot-deep water. Juratic and McGowan were able to pull him up and bring him to the water’s edge, where they got help from other members of Engine 13.
RELATED: 10-year-old boy rescued from Mill Creek Falls by firefighters later dies at hospital
Firefighter Alex Kundrat
On July 3, firefighter Alex Kundrat was off-duty in Berea when he happened upon a motorcycle accident. The fallen rider’s leg was severely injured. Kundrat, a veteran of motor vehicle accidents, had the experience, but no equipment. He improvised a tourniquet from his belt and stemmed the victim’s bleeding. The victim turned out to be retired Cleveland EMS Captain Tony Sessin. Sessin and his family made a point of thanking Kundrat and presenting him with a new belt.
RELATED: Humility and Heroism: Off-duty CLE firefighter credited for life-saving actions
Battalion Chief William Gorey III
Battalion Chief Bill Gorey had just left the scene of a house fire on Cleveland’s East Side last Labor Day when he noticed smoke in the air and met a frantic woman, who told him her sister was inside another home that was on fire. After radioing in the fire, he quickly donned his fire gear and entered the rear of the house. He found a bedroom engulfed in flames, and burned three fingers closing the door to contain the fire. Two engines arrived on scene and helped Gorey’s search while beginning to put the fire out with a hose. The woman was found in a bathroom and was treated for smoke inhalation and burns to 20% of her body. The Rotary Club release said Gorey’s actions gave the woman her best chance to live.
RELATED: Cleveland firefighters rescue woman from house fire on city's east side
Captain Joseph Dorsey
On July 18, Captain Joseph Dorsey with Cleveland fire was able to calm a woman down as she was hanging out of the second-story window of a house that was on fire. He quickly taught her the proper way to exit the window, and stayed at the top of an unsafe residential aluminum extension ladder to make sure she didn’t fall.
Officers Christopher Horvath, Daniel Florentz, Troy White and Brian Kazimer
On April 23, 2017, officers Christopher Horvath, Daniel Florentz, Troy White and Brian Kazimer responded to a call for shots fired. While searching the area, they heard another shot fired nearby and were directed by a neighbor to a dark alley, where they saw a man with a long gun running from the area. As they pursued him, he turned and fired at them. Despite the danger, they continued to chase him and took him into custody several streets away. They recovered an assault rifle, two high-capacity magazines and narcotics.
Dispatchers Kaylee McCoy and Yvette White
On Dec. 3, 2018, dispatcher Kaylee McCoy received a 911 call from a man saying he was tied up in the back of a truck by assailants who thought he was dead. He called 911 using his smartwatch. McCoy was able to calmly get the exact location and description of the vehicle while notifying a supervisor, which enabled police to request a ping of the cell phone to verify the victim’s location.
The victim kept repeating that he had been strangled, choked and left for dead. The call was disconnected. Dispatcher Yvette White got the next call from the man. White quickly pulled up the previous report and was able to gather additional information about signage on the truck, and possibly the owner of the house where the vehicle was located.
About four minutes into the call, the victim said he heard someone coming and became distraught. White was able to get the caller to remain silent, and said she would stay on the line with him until police arrived.
Thankfully, the voices the victim heard turned out to be Cleveland police officers, and White continued to monitor the call until the victim was confirmed safe.
“This is a special day for Rotary,” said Bryan Schauer, President of the Rotary Club of Cleveland. “It gives us a chance to say thank you to all of our safety forces, and to offer special thanks for those who have been identified by their own superiors for going above and beyond the call of duty.”
