New Lenox Fire Protection District’s Life Saver Award Presented to Four Men for Car Fire Rescue

(August 23, 2013) – Earlier this week, the New Lenox Fire Protection District (NLFPD) honored four men with the district’s Life Saver Award for rescuing a man from a car on fire.

In the late morning of July 22, Matthew Martin, Glenn Gillespie, David Piloni, and Jimmy Jackson, Jr. were driving near the area of Gougar and Laraway Roads in New Lenox when they spotted a car fire.

When the men arrived on the scene, they noticed the car had entered a field and was resting on its side. They saw smoke coming out of the vehicle and did not know if anyone was inside until they looked in the window. They soon realized the car’s doors were jammed and they needed to get the car upright. After moving the car, they were able to open the passenger door, cut the driver’s seatbelt with a utility knife and pull him to safety as the flames had begun to reach three to four feet high.

“Thanks to their quick thinking, the four rescuers were able to help the driver survive what could have been a very different outcome,” commented NLFPD Chief Jon Mead. “It is because of their actions that day that the NLFPD felt they deserved the Life Saver Award.”

The primary mission of the New Lenox Fire and Ambulance Protection District is to provide a range of programs designed to protect the lives and property within New Lenox Village and Township from the effects for fires and sudden medical emergencies or exposure to dangerous conditions created by man or nature with professional, compassionate, and quality service.