PUGET SOUND, Wash. –
Employees Rick Slover, Travis Piper and Selena Gamboa exhibited behaviors above and beyond the call of duty as they battled a blaze in the basement of a DLA Distribution Puget Sound, Washington at Bremerton seven story building February 28, 2020.
What started as an electrical fire could have easily turned into a disaster for all the employees throughout the building had it not been for the exemplary actions taken by the employees involved.
Coordinating efforts to notify personnel, contact the installation fire department and activate the fire alarm system, these employees became the front-line responders and protectors to the lives they work alongside of every day.
Noted by Guy Sanchez, site director, DLA Distribution Puget Sound, Washington at Bremerton were the efforts, in particular, of Slover. “Mr. Slover displayed exceptional dedication and disregard for his own personal safety, upon being notified of the fire, Mr. Slover immediately reacted to put the fire out, his only thought being concern for the occupants of this seven-story building,” said Sanchez in a written account of events. “Initially assisting his co-worker with activating the installed fire alarm he subsequently obtained a fire extinguisher and battled a blaze that had grown to ignite a pallet of material. With flames several feet high and heavy smoke, Mr. Slover continued to attack the fire until he had beaten it down, keeping it from spreading to additional nearby material.”
The actions taken by Slover, Piper and Gamboa are an example of not just great employees reacting quickly to a situation, but also heroic human beings responding to a crisis present before them with concern and compassion for hundreds of their fellow DLA Distribution workers, as well as several other Department of Defense tenants at Bremerton on their minds. The selfless nature of their actions stands as an example to all.