| Name: | Roberta Shanahan |
| Gender: | Female |
| Agency: | Chicago Fire Department |
| Type of Firefighter: | Career |
| Rank: | Paramedic/Emergency Medical Technician |
| Type of Duty: | Emergency medical care |
| Type of Award: | Medal of Valor |
| Year of Award: | 2006 |
| Incident City: | Chicago |
| Year of Incident: | 2004 |
| Incident Location Type: | |
| Incident Attribute: |
Paramedic-In-Charge Roberta Shanahan and Paramedic Jorge Lara of the Chicago Fire Department received the Medal of Valor for their actions to save a patient from being struck by a train in Chicago, Illinois on January 16, 2004.
Shanahan and Lara responded to reports that an unconscious person at a Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Train Station. At the scene, they discovered the victim had apparently fallen off of the platform and was lying on the tracks. Shanahan asked a CTA employee to contact the CTA Control Center to shut down the power to the train tracks. The CTA employee was unable to contact the Control Center due to a defective radio, so Shanahan used her radio to contact the EMS dispatch center to relay the message to CTA. Unable to wait any longer for the power to be shut off to the train tracks due to the approaching train, Shanahan and Lara climbed onto the tracks and were able to lift the patient to safety seconds before the approaching train passed the station.
Citations:Gov. Blagojevich honors fallen firefighters, recognizes 28 other firefighters for extraordinary acts of bravery,
Illinois Government News Network, May 11, 2006.
“Gov. Blagojevich recognizes Illinois heroes for quick response and selfless actions,” Illinois Department of Public Health News Release, May 17, 2005.
Heroism & Community Service Awards,
Firehouse, April, 2005.