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Medal of Valor Press Release (Dave Manzec)
January 12th, 2012The Contra Costa County Fire Protection District is pleased to announce that Engineer‐Paramedic Dave Manzeck will be awarded the 2010 Governor’s Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor for his actions in saving the life of Janet Hogan, a 74 year old woman, involved in a car accident that resulted in a near drowning after her car plunged into a canal near Walnut Creek on April 11, 2010.
The award ceremony will take place on September 14, 2011 at the State Capitol in the Governor’s Council Room at 11:30am.
The Governor’s Public Safety Officer Medal of Valor Review Board reviewed 38 nominations for the award, narrowing the list until final selections were made.
The dramatic rescue was a result of a vehicle accident where Hogan’s car went off the road and landed in a rain‐swollen flood control canal. Her car was swept three miles downstream from where it crashed, killing her husband and son. The car eventually wound up upside down in Walnut Creek. Hogan was battling a powerful 20 mph current in the rain‐swollen canal. She managed to grab onto a rock and hold on. After spotting Hogan, Engineer Manzeck was lowered to her location from a California Highway Patrol helicopter and, on the second attempt, Manzeck pulled the unconscious woman from the water.
Manzeck suffered a dislocated shoulder and torn ligament during the rescue and was underwater for ten seconds at one point.
