Local News on WXHC.com is brought to you by:
On Thursday, May 25, a Cortlandville firefighter was honored by the American Red Cross during their annual Real Heroes Breakfast in Binghamton.
Firefighter Jonathan Alteri was awarded the Fire-Rescue Award for his efforts in rescuing a trapped person after a motor vehicle accident on December 16th in the early morning hours.
Alteri sprung into action after arriving at the accident. The vehicle had gone down an embankment and into a creek. He and a bystander went into the freezing water and were able to free the trapped occupant from the vehicle. Alteri was able to pull the occupant of the rolled over vehicle to the bank of the creek where a rope was located to pull them up from the embankment.
The man was trapped in the vehicle for nearly an hour before a bystander noticed the vehicle partially submerged in the creek. It took only 9 minutes from receiving the call that Alteri had the rescue completed. Later on, a report by an emergency department physician who treated the man, said if he remained in the truck any longer, it would’ve been a fatality.
*Feature image via Cortlandville Fire Department*
