RESERVE COP TO RECEIVE HERO'S BADGE.Byline: DENNIS McCARTHY Dennis McCarthy may refer to:
He could have been home with his wife and two baby daughters that Saturday night last month, when the call came in that two boys were being swept down the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. flood control channel Flood control channels are a series of large, concrete, and empty (except when a flood is actually present) open-air channels that extend a ways below the street levels of some larger cities, so that if and when a flood occurs, the flood will run into the channels, and proceed to be . No one was paying Paul LaBella to pull the 6 p.m.-to-3 a.m. shift at the San Fernando San Fernando, city, Argentina San Fernando (săn fərnăn`dō), city (1991 pop. 144,761), Buenos Aires prov., E Argentina. It is a district administrative center in the Greater Buenos Aires area. Police Department, where he volunteers as a reserve officer. During the week, LaBella works as an insurance investigator to pay the bills. His volunteer job - three days a month for the past four years - was for something more important than money. A lot of people complain there's never a cop around when you need one, but complain is all they do, LaBella figures. He decided to do something more to keep his community safer. He spent a year going through the same grueling training as sworn police officers to take a job that wasn't going to pay him a dime. He wanted to let a lot of other families in his end of the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. sleep a little sounder, not just his own. It's the same reason the 29 other reserve officers on this small Police Department give up their nights and days at home to supplement the 37 sworn police officers protecting San Fernando. They want to make sure there's a cop around when somebody needs one. ``It's a tribute to their humanitarianism hu·man·i·tar·i·an·ism n. 1. Concern for human welfare, especially as manifested through philanthropy. 2. The belief that the sole moral obligation of humankind is the improvement of human welfare. 3. ,'' is the way San Fernando Police Chief Tony Alba puts it. So that's what LaBella was doing at 6:40 p.m. March 12 when the call came in. Being a humanitarian. A few hours later, people were calling him a hero. ``The dispatch call said two boys had been riding their bikes along the wash by the El Cariso Golf Course when they fell in,'' LaBella says. ``We drove down San Fernando Road San Fernando Road is a major street in the city and county of Los Angeles. It starts off in Castaic as The Old Road, passing through Santa Clarita and the Newhall Pass, where upon its intersection with Sierra Highway near the junction of the Golden State (I-5) and the about a mile to get ahead of them. ``When I saw them coming out of a tunnel, I jumped over the fence, and slid down the embankment while my partner threw me a life preserver life preserver, a personal flotation device (PFD) intended to keep the wearer afloat, particularly in case of shipwreck. A Type I PFD will keep even unconscious people afloat in a face–up position; it is the most common type used at sea. to throw to the kids. ``The older boy had the younger one in his lap, but you could see he was having a hard time keeping his head above water. ``Hypothermia hypothermia Abnormally low body temperature, with slowing of physiological activity. It is artificially induced (usually with ice baths) for certain surgical procedures and cancer treatments. was setting in. They had already been in the freezing water 15 minutes. They couldn't move their arms to catch the life preserver.'' LaBella told his chief a few hours later that when he looked out at the two scared faces quickly floating away from him in the 25 mph current, he didn't see two Latino boys. ``Paul got emotional and told me he saw his own two girls in that water, and would want any police officer jumping in to save them,'' Alba said. So La Bella jumped in, still wearing his heavy protective vest and gun belt. The weight of the equipment took him to the bottom, where the rough surface of the concrete ripped his clothing and scraped his skin. He never noticed. The reserve cop was too busy grabbing the boys and holding them on his lap - taking the brunt of the injuries himself. ``I told them everything was going to be OK. I had to keep them talking because they were losing consciousness in the 30-degree water. I asked them what school they went to, what their names were. ``Finally, about a mile away, we reached the catch basin at Laurel Canyon Boulevard Laurel Canyon Boulevard is a major street in the city of Los Angeles, California. It starts off at Polk Street in Sylmar in the northern San Fernando Valley near the junction of the San Diego (Interstate 405) and the Golden State Freeways (Interstate 5). , where the water receded enough for me to drag them over to the side, grab a guardrail and hang on until the fire department came to rescue us.'' La Bella had spent 30 minutes in the freezing water, and was suffering from hypothermia himself. He was treated at the hospital for sprains to both hands and numerous abrasions to his hands, legs and buttocks buttocks /but·tocks/ (but´oks) the two fleshy prominences formed by the gluteal muscles on the lower part of the back. . His uniform was shredded. The two boys - brothers, ages 13 and 10 - were also treated for minor scrapes and bruises, and released. He has not heard a word of thanks from the boys or their family. ``It's OK, I'm not doing this job for thank-yous,'' the reserve officer said this week after finding out he was being awarded the San Fernando Police Department's Medal of Valor For other medals of the same name, see . The Medal of Valor (O't Ha'gvora, Hebrew: עיטור הגבורה) is the highest Israeli Military decoration. for his rescue efforts. He's doing this job because if it was his daughters, he'd want a cop around to save them. When he got home from the hospital that night around midnight, Paul's wife, Milan, was still up waiting for him. ``I saw it on the news,'' she said, kissing him. ``I am so proud of you.'' Together they walked into the bedroom where their 2-year and 7-month-old daughters were sleeping soundly. Someday, when they're older, the girls will be told a great story about the night their humanitarian dad became a hero. Dennis McCarthy, (818) 713-3749 dennis.mccarthy(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: San Fernando Reserve Police Officer Paul LaBella will receive the department's Medal of Valor for saving two boys from the Pacoima Wash. Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion