News

INSET BELOW: Prokos and Ursini (left); Sember and Massimino (right)

By Sallie James

    When it comes to saving lives, some Boca Raton Fire Rescue members stand out.
    City Council members recently recognized four of the department’s finest, lauding them for heroism, fast action and dedication while off duty.
    Among the honorees: firefighter/paramedic Randy Prokos, firefighter/paramedic Paula Ursini and Lt. Mike Sember, whose quick thinking and skill all saved lives in critical situations.
    Lt. Mike Massimino was honored as the city’s Firefighter/Paramedic of the Year for 2015.
    Prokos provided emergency medical care to a woman who had collapsed from cardiac arrest inside Renegades Night Club in West Palm Beach. Prokos, who was there off duty, began cardiopulmonary resuscitation until West Palm Beach rescue workers arrived.
    West Palm Beach police said the woman would not have survived the July 18 incident without the CPR Prokos gave.
    Ursini was recognized for saving a woman who was trapped in a sinking car. Ursini was on her way to work when she saw a car veer off Florida’s Turnpike and into a canal. Ursini jumped in, swam out to the sinking car and freed the trapped driver, whose leg was caught under a seat.
    Even though she was in water over her head, Ursini was able to calm the frantic woman and swim her back to shore safely during the Dec. 1 incident.
    Sember, a recreational diver, helped save the life of a friend with whom he was diving July 29, when a problem occurred with the air system they were using. The main airline kinked, causing the duo’s masks to suck into their faces upon inhalation.
    Sember rescued his friend, who had blacked out, and was able to remain calm and get to the surface. Sember, relying on his training, helped rescue workers route his friend to the appropriate medical facility and pinpoint what was wrong.
    Massimino was recognized for his overall professionalism, numerous contributions to the emergency medical service, knowledge of specific medical protocols and overall dedication.
    Boca Raton Fire Rescue spokesman Bob Lemons said it’s all in a day’s work. “These are the kind of things we do all the time, obviously not only while we are on the trucks,” he said. “It’s really not a job you ever leave 100 percent. The skills we have are with us all the time.”