Somers firefighter Ray Stovall gets the business from his two young children, Ella, 4, and Nathan, 2, who can’t resist knocking off his cap, part of his formal uniform, Monday evening, June 30, 2014, outside the Somers firehouse. Moments earlier Stovall received the Medal of Valor for his part in rescuing a woman from a burning home last December in Somersville. (Jim Michaud / Journal Inquirer)
By Gayla M. Cawley
Journal Inquirer (Read the full article here)
SOMERS — The Somers Fire Department on Monday recognized one of its own and a firefighter from the Hazardville Fire Department in Enfield for their heroism in rescuing a woman from a burning building last December.
Somers firefighter Ray Stovall was on hand at the Fire Department on Main Street to receive his Medal of Valor and official citations from the General Assembly and his department, but Capt. Jaime Hurley of the Hazardville Fire Department was unable to attend as he was working.
First Selectwoman Lisa Pellegrini presented Stovall with the citation from the General Assembly, reading aloud some of it, which proclaimed, “You are a model firefighter and an inspiration to us all.”
Pellegrini told Stovall, “You are a hero.”
Somers Fire Chief Gary Schiessl presented Stovall with the Medal of Valor and a citation from the department for “entering a burning structure, rescuing the woman, and bringing her to safety.”
“There is no greater reward for firefighters than to save a life,” Schiessl said.
Somers Deputy Fire Chief Frank Falcone, Jr. also responded to the call that Wednesday morning on Dec. 4, 2013, at a multi-family residence at 61 Main St. He witnessed the lifesaving actions of Stovall and Hurley as they found the woman, Katie Colgan, 34, lying unconscious in her daughter’s second-floor bedroom and carried her outside to safety.
Falcone said the Medal of Valor was fitting and that the rescue was “truly a team effort.”
Stovall agreed, saying, “It was one of those days where everything worked. It’s one of the proudest moments of my career so far. To be able to save a life is definitely awesome.” (Read the full article here)