In October, a Cobb County firefighter was hanging upside down from a helicopter with his head under water, almost drowning, as he safely rescued a teenage boy.
On April 25, Cobb County Firefighter Ralph A. (Rusty) Brown II will receive the 2018 Ray Downey Courage and Valor Award, according to FireEngineering.com, chosen by unanimous vote for this national award to be given during the Fire Department Instructors Conference International Opening Ceremony in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Paying tribute to the memory of the firefighters who died on 9/11/2001, this award memorializes the name and legacy of Fire Department of New York Deputy Chief Ray Downey who died at the age of 63 in the collapse of the World Trade Center buildings.
At High Falls State Park about 50 miles south of Atlanta off I-75, Brown participated in the teen’s rescue as a member of the Cobb Fire and Emergency Services Technical Rescue Team that is attached to the Georgia Search and Rescue (GSAR) Task Force of the Georgia State Patrol’s aviation unit.
Sadly, Brown also recovered the body of the teen’s younger brother, age 12, who had fallen from the top of a waterfall.
For the teen’s rescue, Brown also received the Monroe County Medal of Valor Award and the Georgia State Patrol Commissioner’s Citation for Distinguished Service Award.
A member of the Marietta, then Cobb fire service since 2005, Brown has served with Cobb County’s Technical Rescue Team since 2011.
Videos: facebook.com/137728248514/videos/10155348895688515, sav.com/news/video-georgia-teen-describes-losing-younger-brother-at-high-falls-state-park/997820290, youtu.be/t1X5P9myxf4.
Information: FireEngineering.com/articles/2018/03/2018-courage-and-valor-award.html.
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