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Society expects fire fighters and paramedics to do heroic things. Risk, after all, is an integral part of the job once they sign up. What happened a week ago last Friday exemplifies what we're talking about!
It was exceptionally dangerous. Propane gas leaking from an overturned tanker near the mouth of Parley's Canyon! A single spark could have set off a huge, devastating explosion. Yet the driver of the truck was trapped in the cab and needed to be rescued.
The six emergency responders understood the dangers. They knew that their lives, too, would be in jeopardy, yet they moved into that cloud of gas with professionalism grounded in training and saved the life of the driver.
It was heroic in every sense.
Today, KSL pays tribute to Paramedics Mitch King, Erik Van Duren and Jason Coble, along with Heavy Rescue Specialist Travis Hobbs, Fire Fighter Lynn Egbert and Capt. Matt Hambleton.
Thankfully, such instances where the danger is so extraordinarily grave don't occur very often. But when they do, society can be grateful for those highly trained men and women, who put their lives on the line to preserve public safety and to protect, even save the lives of others.
