Liberty Mutual honors fire safety heroes with National Fire Awards & grants

Ask any firefighter what being “on-call” means, and you’ll hear tales of midnight rescues or holiday dinners cut short by the call of duty.  In fact, every 19 seconds, a U.S. fire department responds to a fire somewhere across the country, according to the National Fire Protection Association.  Liberty Mutual Insurance will honor three men who exemplify this round-the-clock dedication – Bayonne, N.J. Fire Captain Jack Dunne and Firefighter Michael Daly, and Las Vegas, Nev. Public Information Officer Tim Szymanski – with the 2009 Liberty Mutual National Firemark Award.  The awards will be presented February 17 at the Firehouse World Conference and Expo in San Diego.

While off-duty, these public servants performed brave rescues and provided invaluable fire safety education in their communities.  For their tireless efforts, Liberty Mutual will award the Bayonne and Las Vegas Fire Departments each with a $10,000 grant.  The winners also earn a trip to the largest fire safety exhibit in the United States, Liberty Mutual’s “Where’s the Fire?”TM attraction at INNOVENTIONS at Epcot® at the Walt Disney World® Resort in Florida. 

How did these men earn this honor?  Consider their selfless stories:

Liberty Mutual National Firemark Award for Heroism
Fire Captain Jack Dunne and Firefighter Michael Daly, Bayonne Fire Department
What seemed like a peaceful day off for Jack Dunne and Michael Daly turned into a heroic rescue, when they discovered a mother and two children trapped in a house fire near Daly’s front yard.  Both men raced to the scene, only to find the victims trapped in the home’s attic much higher than their ladder could reach.  Balancing himself on the ladder’s top rung, with Daly directly below to provide support, Dunne successfully retrieved all three victims from the attic window.  This courageous rescue earned Fire Captain Dunne and Firefighter Daly the 2009 Liberty Mutual National Firemark Award for Heroism.

Liberty Mutual National Firemark Award for Community Service and Public Education
Public Information Officer Tim Szymanski, Las Vegas Fire and Rescue
What might appear to be a 9-to-5 public relations job for Tim Szymanski is actually a 24-hour commitment, when factoring in the numerous fire prevention classes he teaches, the 15,000 free smoke alarms he has placed in local homes, and the Citizens Fire Academy he created, which has inspired graduates to become firefighters, volunteer for the Red Cross, and launch fire safety campaigns in their own neighborhoods.  For this commitment to the safety and welfare of Las Vegas-area families, Szymanski is the recipient of the 2009 Liberty Mutual National Firemark Award for Community Service and Public Education.

“This year’s Liberty Mutual National Firemark Awards recognize the countless hours put in by firefighters who make us safe, even on their own personal time,” said Greg Gordon, senior vice president of Marketing, at Liberty Mutual.  “Whether saving victims from three-alarm house fires or putting out fires before they start through educational community programs, these three men are heroes – and their selfless deeds are to be celebrated.”

About the Liberty Mutual Firemark Award
The Liberty Mutual Firemark Award is presented annually to U.S. firefighters who best represent their communities through courageous valor and who best demonstrate the firefighter’s selfless spirit.  The award takes its name from the firemark, a leaden plate in the form of a Phoenix rising from the ashes, which American fire offices in the 18th and 19th centuries used to mark all the houses they insured.  The firemark stood as a guarantee to all fire brigades that the insurance company that insured the house in question would reward handsomely the brigade extinguishing a fire on the premises.s

Liberty Mutual National Firemark Award winners are chosen from a pool of nominees who have received local awards from a Liberty Mutual office in their community throughout the year by a committee comprised of numerous fire safety organizations; including the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the National Volunteer Fire Council, the National Fire Protection Association, the National Association of State Fire Marshals, and the Society of Fire Protection Engineers.

Fire departments can nominate a firefighter for a local Liberty Mutual Firemark Award at www.befiresmart.com, an educational website created by Liberty Mutual for parents, children, educators, and firefighters, featuring engaging videos, lesson plans for teachers, and interactive games on fire safety and prevention.