A fire captain who shielded colleagues from a fire with his body was one of 80 Omaha firefighters honored Monday.
Five firefighters received the Medal of Courage, given for going above and beyond normal duties.
Ryan Sell, Brian Demery, Kevin Meschede and Capt. Peter Phillips earned the medal for pulling a man out of a trench after it collapsed Sept. 16. Others won awards for bravery that day, but the four received the medal because they were in the trench — and Sell and Meschede spent much of that time upside down, said Assistant Fire Marshal Jim Gentile.
Gentile noted that a collapsed trench killed a worker and trapped two firefighters in the late 1990s and said that was on firefighters' minds during this year's rescue.
The fifth firefighter earning the Medal of Courage was Capt. Curt Ecklebee for his work at a Sept. 11 house fire.
A firefighter had become trapped, and Capt. James Stennis and Roland Brickell tried to pull him up. To shield them, Ecklebee stood between the three men and the fire, burning his coat and helmet.
The department honored a civilian, Jason Rolles, for his work during a drowning in July.
Attendees also celebrated 41 promotions from the past few years.
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402-444-1084, roseann.moring@owh.com
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