Announcements for the Presidential awards were made on Sunday, with the names of seven Mumbai fire brigade jawans being included in the list for bravery and four named for excellent service. The seven firefighters had done a commendable job in handling the gas leak incident at Kasturba Hospital last year.
On August 7, last year, LPG leaked from a 10 metric tonne tank while there were many patients admitted to the hospital. The seven fire brigade personnel put their lives at stake to bring the situation under control and shifted 58 patients to a safer location. They had also evacuated hospital staff and were felicitated by BMC Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal for their brave act.
Chief fire brigade officer Hemant Parab said, “These seven jawans had risked their own lives and saved many others. They also controlled the leak, thus averting a major mishap.”
The names of the bravery award winners are Dnyandev Ghadigaonkar (divisional fire officer), Vishal Chandrakant Vishwasrao (senior station officer), Deepak Madhukar Jadhav (station officer), Sagar Jagganath Khopde (station officer), Sanjay Sadashiv Gaikwad (leading fireman), Sanjay Laxman Nikam (fireman), Ganesh Deoram Choudhary (fireman).
The personnel nominated for excellent fire service are Sampat Bapurao Karade (divisional fire officer), Dattatray Bandu Patil (leading fireman), Sandip Ramchandra Gawali (driver operator) and Guruprasad Anil Sawant (assistant foreman) for excellence in service during their tenure.
