Tulsa firefighters honored

City of Tulsa firefighters honored their own Tuesday evening. Awards were given to firefighters who've gone above and beyond the call of duty. Five men were up for the firefighter of the year award

Thursday, March 1st 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

City of Tulsa firefighters honored their own Tuesday evening. Awards were given to firefighters who've gone above and beyond the call of duty. Five men were up for the firefighter of the year award for their heroics.

A fire that heavily damaged a Tulsa building last November almost took the lives of several Tulsa firefighters. The roof collapsed and the windows wouldn't open, but their comrades came to their rescue, Fire Captain Ray Driskell was the one who broke a window with his clipboard and got them out. "The first guy I noticed when I came around was the captain he was lying on the floor he was out of air." He and four others are contenders for the firefighter of the year award for their heroics this past year.

Travis Fry is a nominee because he rescued a 4-year-old boy in an apartment fire. He, like the others, says every fire is a team effort. "I don't really know if I deserve it like I said it was a team effort and one couldn't have been done without the other." Those who fought with him are up for fire company of the year.

There's a pair of firefighters who are nominated together: Spencer Garden and Justin Breedlove. They'd just left a firefighter competition in Las Vegas when they witnessed a head-on accident. Spencer Garden, "We looked at each other and decided to get out and help." Justin Breedlove, "We were there for 20 minutes and it seemed like an eternity."

The last nominee is Mike Hughes; he's being called a hero for several reasons. One was a rescue from an apartment fire in December. Another is for helping a man who had a heart attack at a Tulsa restaurant. His wife sent a thank-you note. "To mike and all those who helped thanks to you and God we will be going to Sun City Friday evening." Award or no award, it's happy endings like that that make every firefighter feel like hero.

Tulsa firefighter Travis Fry was named firefighter of the year for his role in helping pulling a child out of a burning apartment.