Lieutenant John Vanderstar (Fire Department City of New York, New York)

On October 23, 2022, Lieutenant John Vanderstar was working in Ladder 44 when a civilian reported a fire around the corner. Upon arriving, Lieutenant Vanderstar and the inside crew of Ladder 44 ascended the interior stairs to the fire apartment door on the fifth floor. The door was forced open, but it only opened a few inches to reveal two chain locks with heavy heat and fire pushing around the door. Realizing these chain locks indicated the presence of people inside, Lieutenant Vanderstar directed his crew to continue forcing the door open while using the extinguisher to hold back the fire around the door frame. 

Suspecting that a victim was trapped behind the door, Lieutenant Vanderstar had another firefighter use the extinguisher to hold back the fire while he squeezed through the narrow door opening to sweep the hallway for victims. 

Lieutenant Vanderstar heard a child's cry from down the hall, and without hesitation or water for protection, he decisively acted to push through the fire area to a back bedroom. On the floor he found a gurgling mother with a child laying on top of her. Knowing he could not go back down the hall with the victims until the fire was knocked down, he dragged the mother and child to a window for a chance at fresh air or potential removal from the roof. Once the fire extinguisher the crew was using ran out, Lieutenant Vanderstar had them close the apartment door to limit the spread of fire until a hose line arrived. This effectively trapped him with the victims. 

When Engine 42 arrived with a hose line, they entered the apartment to push back the fire. The Ladder 44 crew quickly accessed the trapped victims with Lieutenant Vanderstar and assisted in removing the mother that was in cardiac arrest. Lieutenant Vanderstar raced out of the apartment and downstairs with the child, handing her to paramedics. The mother and child were treated at Lincoln Hospital and later released. Lieutenant Vanderstar’ s disregard for his own safety in perilous fire conditions mark the courage that saved this mother and child who would have surely perished.