WARWICK – The fire department doors rolled up and Port Authority Police Pipers led a contingent of firefighters, including a reluctant hero, Kevin Colomba, into the Warwick Fire House on Tuesday.
The firefighters had gathered to see Senator James Skoufis present Colomba with a Liberty Medal for his bravery in saving three persons in a two-vehicle accident on October 30 on Rt. 17A in Tuxedo.
Colomba saved the two men and a woman as he returned from his midnight shift as a police officer of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey about 7 a.m. The car and pickup truck started to burn after colliding. All three are alive thanks to Colomba’s quick response.
Colomba, a captain with the Warwick Fire Department, said he was just doing what he was trained to do.
“I think there are people we lost in the past, whether it’s 9/11, those out in the field protecting our freedoms, those are heroes to me, not me,” he said.
“When we see something like this, we take action,” said Colomba.
Many think otherwise. Fellow firefighters, workers and local officials joined Colomba’s parents Barbara and Kenneth, and his sister Alyssa, as Skoufis placed the medal around Colomba’s neck.
Skoufis said awarding the Liberty Medal must go through a rigorous review process; the Senate Majority Leader must approve the medal. Few are approved; few are awarded.
Colomba “demonstrated his love for this community, his love for his neighbors,” Skoufis said.
Skoufis said he was “deeply honored” to present Colomba with this gesture of appreciation for “extraordinary courage.”
He said it is important “to acknowledge good things.”
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply