The Ray Downey Courage and Valor Award, presented by the Fire Engineering Courage and Valor Foundation, commemorates the life and career achievements of Deputy Chief Ray Downey, chief of rescue operations and 39-year veteran of the Fire Department of New York (FDNY). Meet this year’s nominees for the award, which is presented annually at the Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Firefighter Ronald M. Corsale, Fire Department of New York (FDNY). He has been a member of the fire service for four and a half years.
Comments: “Firefighter Ronny Corsale, 25, jumped 15 feet into the choppy water and swam toward mid-river, fully extending the 200-foot rope he was tied to.” www.nydailynews.com, Jan. 8, 2010
Scenario
On October 11, 2009, at approximately 1720 hours, FDNY Ladder 16 was returning from a gas emergency when they were dispatched to the East River at 63rd Street. The call was for a person in distress in the river. At that time, the report of the river’s ebb tide was 3.2 knots, and the wind was blowing west-northwest at 15 miles per hour. The river was turbulent and moving quickly. The victim was midriver and was being carried swiftly in a southerly direction. En route to the scene, Ladder 16’s members started their size-up. Corsale donned an oversize cold-water rescue suit. He and Firefighter Matt Lopez disembarked from the truck at 63rd Street, ran three blocks south to 60th Street, dodging cars as they crossed the FDR Drive during rush hour.
After he was secured by a 200-foot lifeline, Corsale climbed over a six-foot fence and scaled down a 15-foot seawall. Seeing that the river’s current was pushing the victim downstream rapidly, and knowing that he only had 200 feet of lifeline, he would have to swim quickly at a southeast angle to intercept the victim. When Corsale reached the victim, he tried to make verbal contact with him and pass him a buoy, but the victim was incoherent and unresponsive. Corsale had to maintain control of the situation by wrapping the buoy and himself around the victim. After signaling that he had secured the victim, he and the victim were pulled to safety.
MARY JANE DITTMAR is senior associate editor of Fire Engineering and conference manager of FDIC. Before joining the magazine in January 1991, she served as editor of a trade magazine in the health/nutrition market and held various positions in the educational and medical advertising fields. She has a bachelor’s degree in English/journalism and a master’s degree in communication arts.
