From left, Atlantic County Firefighters’ Association members William Merola, Chairman of the Executive Committee Howard Berchtold and President Chuck Mackintosh at the Valor Awards ceremony Thursday.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
The Minotola Volunteer Fire Company was honored Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards for its aid during an Aug. 3, 2023 house explosion.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Hundreds came out to the Anthony Canale Training Center in Egg Harbor Township on Wednesday for the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Atlantic County Firefighters' Association Chariman of the Executive Committee Howard Berchtold.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Richard Edwards of the Bayview Volutneer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Claude Nelson of the Famington Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Bruce Jensen of the Weekstown Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Thomas Culleny Sr. of the Bayview Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Richard Smith of the Bayview Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Clifford Mosier of the Germania Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Atlantic County Firefighters' Association president Chuck Mackintosh.
JOHN RUSSO, Staff Writer
Minotola Volunteer Fire Company Chief Joseph Kaspar talks about the Aug. 3, 2023 house explosion Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP — Atlantic County firefighters still think about the house explosion in Buena last summer.
Howard Berchtold Jr., chairman of the Atlantic County Firefighters’ Association, said that explosion, a unique response call for fire companies, has been the topic of many meetings since August.
“That was a heck of day, I’ll leave it at that,” said Berchtold, a former Galloway Township fire chief. “It was an incident a lot of us have never seen before.”
The Minotola Volunteer Fire Company, the first responding department to that fire, was among those honored with a unit citation Wednesday night during the 31st annual Harold J. “Whitey” Swartz Valor Awards at the Anthony “Tony” Canale Fire Training Center.
Minotola was one of several departments honored for valor during rescues in 2023. Also honored were seven firefighters for 50 years of service.
The Valor Awards started in 1991 to honor emergency personnel and civilians who risked their lives to save others. There are 43 departments and companies in Atlantic County. Minotola ceased operations in December.
“Those of us in leadership positions, we think it’s important, not just for the individuals but for the fire service, for public safety,” said Berchtold, 64, “and I think it’s for the community, most importantly, so they can recognize the good services being done.”
For about 10 years, the Valor Awards have been named in honor of Swartz, who spent more than 50 years in firefighting, including 20 as a county fire marshal. Swartz, 80, died in 2017.
“I really can’t think of a better way to honor the dedication the men and women of Atlantic County have when you hit 50 years, and also the bravery for the Valor Awards,” said association President Chuck Mackintosh, 55, of the Bayview Volunteer Fire Company in Galloway. “There’s not enough you can do, but this is the best we can do for them. It really is a special day.”
A woman and an infant were taken to the hospital Thursday after an explosion caused a three-alarm fire that destroyed a home and damaged several others.
Three departments had members awarded a Certificate of Valor Class One — the Atlantic City Fire, Egg Harbor City Police and Hamilton Township Police departments — for extreme risk in making a rescue.
Members of the Egg Harbor City and Hamilton police departments were involved in a March 7, 2023, rescue in EHC in which a woman was wielding a knife while locked in an upstairs bedroom of a group home. While that person was locked in the room, there also was smoke.
Egg Harbor City police Sgt. Nicholas Mangold and Patrolmen Matthew Rex and Jose Rodriguez and Hamilton police Sgt. Mark Perna disarmed the 54-year-old.
Atlantic City fire Capt. Vernon Cruse and firefighter Ronald Laielli received the other two Class One awards for their role in a Dec. 29 fire at an 18-person boarding home on Pennsylvania Avenue. Both men were assigned to complete a primary search of the third floor of the building, which was on fire at the time. They heard faint signs of a victim on the third floor. Having to pass through a room on fire with zero visibility, high heat and no protection from a landline, they found a conscious man and lowered him from the third-floor window to crews on an adjacent roof.
Several departments had personnel honored with Unit Citations, given to a group working together in making a rescue: Minotola, the Farmington Volunteer Fire Company, Cardiff Volunteer Fire Company, Bargaintown Volunteer Fire Company, Egg Harbor Township Police Department, EHT EMS, Longport Volunteer Fire Department and Longport Beach Patrol.
On June 24, volunteer companies from Farmington, Cardiff and Bargaintown, and EHT police and EMS, responded to the Atlantic County Utilities Authority for an industrial accident. An ACUA employee had attempted to clear a jam in a large mulching machine when a steel grate fell, fractured his leg and trapped him on top of the 10-foot-tall machine. The units worked together to get him out of the precarious position.
On Aug. 18, Longport firefighters and lifeguards responded to the Seaview Harbor Marina in EHT for a man in cardiac arrest. They provided CPR and automated external defibrillator shocks while removing him from a fishing boat. The man was taken to a hospital and later sent home.
On Aug. 3, in the Landisville section of Buena, Minotola was the first on scene for a house explosion. It was later determined a large cache of explosives on the property was the cause of the blast. A 1-year-old and a 16-year-old were taken to a Philadelphia hospital with injuries, and four people were unaccounted for. After the Atlantic City Bomb Squad mitigated any explosives present, search and recovery commenced into the next day. Two children, ages 2 and 3, identified by family as Lyanni and Leovanni, and two unidentified men, ages 52 and 73, died in the explosion.
“This is the Minotola fire company, and they deserve a lot of respect for what they went through,” Minotola Chief Joseph Kaspar said. “A lot of them have seen a lot of things they may not have seen before, and some had seen things they did see before. But it’s not up to me how to determine how they process what they saw that day. All I can say is they responded with respect and professionalism that only a chief could ask for.”
PHOTOS: 31st Harold J. 'Whitey' Swartz Valor Awards
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From left, Atlantic County Firefighters’ Association members William Merola, Chairman of the Executive Committee Howard Berchtold and President Chuck Mackintosh at the Valor Awards ceremony Thursday.
The Minotola Volunteer Fire Company was honored Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards for its aid during an Aug. 3, 2023 house explosion.
Hundreds came out to the Anthony Canale Training Center in Egg Harbor Township on Wednesday for the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
Richard Edwards of the Bayview Volutneer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
Claude Nelson of the Famington Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
Bruce Jensen of the Weekstown Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
Thomas Culleny Sr. of the Bayview Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
Richard Smith of the Bayview Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
Clifford Mosier of the Germania Volunteer Fire Company is honored for 50 years of membership Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
Minotola Volunteer Fire Company Chief Joseph Kaspar talks about the Aug. 3, 2023 house explosion Wednesday night at the 31st annual Harold J. "Whitey" Swartz Valor Awards.
Welcome to the discussion.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
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Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.