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Dawn was beginning to break on a bleak and cloudy Friday morning, April 10, 2003. A faulty electrical cord had overheated at 477 Gates Avenue inside apartment 4B. Trapped inside this apartment--as the resulting fire became more intense--was little four-year-old Juan “Jay” Medias. Ladder Company 111, under the supervision of Lieutenant Thomas Gardner, was dispatched for a phone alarm at the above location with “additional information”--reports of children trapped. The members sensed, correctly, they were going to a working fire. On arrival at the location, Lieutenant Gardner noticed heavy smoke pushing from several windows of the top floor of the four-story multiple dwelling. He immediately ordered the apparatus positioned in front of the fire building. Numerous residents were exiting the building at this time to escape the intense smoke and flames, thus causing a logjam at the entranceway. Realizing there was a report of children trapped, Lieutenant Gardner pushed his way through the exodus and up the interior stairway to the fourth floor. Immediately upon reaching the fourth floor, he encountered a heavy smoke and heat condition, forcing him to don his face piece. He then was forced to crawl approximately 30 feet in the direction of the fire until he reached the apartment door of 4B. From this vantage point, the Lieutenant noticed heavy fire coming from a room about 10 feet in on the right side. At this time, he received confirmation from Battalion Chief Edwin Travers, Battalion, 57, that there was a child trapped in the apartment. Realizing that he could not wait any longer for the hose-line to advance, Lieutenant Gardner decided to enter the apartment on his belly. He could hear the child’s faint cries, which appeared to be coming from the other side of the fire. Lieutenant Gardner pushed on, crawling under the fire to reach the badly injured child in the rear bedroom. Reaching the child, Lieutenant Gardner now had to come back through the fire again. Using his own body to shield the little boy from the searing heat, Lieutenant Gardner carried the youngster through the fire and down the remaining 20 feet of smoke-filled hallway to safety as flames rolled over their heads. After placing the child safely in the hands of other rescue personnel, the exhausted Lieutenant again entered the building with the advancing hand-line from Engine Company 235 to continue a primary search. Four-year Jay Medias was transported to Cornell Burn Center in critical condition. Despite his burns and smoke-related injuries, the child was expected to make a full recovery. If not for the heroic and selfless actions of Lieutenant Gardner, four-year-old Jay most certainly would have perished in this fire. For his actions in upholding the long and proud traditions of the New York City Fire Department, Lieutenant Thomas J. Gardner is honored today and presented with the Thomas A. Kenny Memorial Medal.--RMcC |
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Thomas
A. Kenny Memorial Medal
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