| Name: | James Shields |
| Gender: | Male |
| Agency: | Hazel Crest Fire Department |
| Type of Firefighter: | Career |
| Rank: | Firefighter |
| Type of Duty: | Firefighter rescue, Firefighting operations, Search and rescue operations |
| Type of Award: | Medal of Honor |
| Year of Award: | 2011 |
| Incident City: | Homewood |
| Year of Incident: | 2010 |
| Incident Location Type: | Residential |
| Incident Attribute: | Fires |
Lieutenant Kevin Sears and Firefighter James Shields of the Hazel Crest Fire Department, along with Firefighter Karra Kopas of the Homewood Fire Department, were awarded the Medal of Honor for their efforts to rescue a fallen firefighter in Homewood, Illinois on March 30, 2010.
At nine o’clock that evening, Homewood firefighters were dispatched to a house fire on Lincoln Avenue after a woman called in and said that her 87-year-old husband, a partially paralyzed man, was trapped in a burning chair that was in close proximity to some oxygen tanks. Kopas and Firefighter Brian Carey arrived on the scene and entered the fully involved house to search for the trapped victim. While they were in the home, they got caught in a flashover. Kopas tried to rescue Carey, but was unsuccessful. Lieutenant Sears and Firefighter Shields braved increasingly deteriorating conditions inside the house to rescue Kopas and Carey.
Kopas suffered second- and third-degree burns while, sadly, Carey did not survive. Carey became the first member of the Homewood Fire Department to die in the line of duty. In 2011, Homewood renamed their firefighter training center after Firefighter Brian Carey in his honor.
Citations:
”Carey, others remembered at memorial.” Southtown Star, May 12, 2011.
”Homewood firefighters honored in Springfield ceremony for sacrifice and valor.” Homewood-Flossmoor Patch, May 11, 2011.
”Homewood honors 2 for heroism.” Southtown Star, December 10, 2010.